EU-Swiss agreement should 'reinforce' local and cantonal governments' cooperation

The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) has welcomed a package of agreements intended to stabilise and develop bilateral relations between Switzerland and the European Union, but has called for the agreements to embed a strong territorial and sub-national dimension, including by giving cities, regions and cantons a direct role in monitoring and implementation of the agreements.

The recommendations, which were adopted by the CoR on 15 October, reflect a desire that the bilateral agreements will "provide stability, continuity, and visibility to a cooperation that already yields concrete results but can and must be further strengthened", said the rapporteur for the CoR's opinion, Matteo Luigi Bianchi (IT/ECR), member of Morazzone local authority.

Mr Bianchi said that one of the opinion's main objectives is to ensure that the territorial dimension of EU-Swiss cooperation is strengthened in "a continuous and systematic manner", in part by institutionalising cooperation between the CoR and the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Governments.

Norman Gobbi, President of the Canton of Ticino’s government and representative of the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Governments, expressed the interest of the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Governments in establishing cooperation with the CoR, saying that "it could provide a structured space for dialogue where regions and cantons can articulate and assert their interests". The Swiss cantons are, he said, "convinced that stable, long-term relations between the European Union and Switzerland are in everyone’s interest" and that "Switzerland and its cantons are committed to cohesion, involvement, and, above all, the search for pragmatic solutions to the everyday problems of our territories, our businesses, and our citizens".

Mr Gobbi said that Switzerland's cantons have "extensive powers, for example, in education, healthcare, justice and security, economy, taxation, and culture" and will play "a decisive role in implementing and concretising the package of agreements negotiated between Switzerland and the European Union".

The recommendations follow a political agreement reached in December 2024 on a package of 11 bilateral agreements between the EU and Switzerland. The package has yet to be ratified, a process that will involve a referendum in Switzerland. The package envisages regular meetings between the European Parliament and the Swiss parliament; the CoR has asked to be given observer status in these inter-parliamentary meetings.

During the CoR debate on 15 October, particular emphasis was placed on the need for effective cooperation on labour mobility, infrastructure, cross-border public services, border management, biodiversity, as well as on the need for 'active subsidiarity', to ensure that sub-national levels play a central role in shaping potential agreements with a strong territorial dimension.

Quote: 

Rapporteur Matteo Luigi Bianchi (IT/ECR), member of Morazzone local authority: "We aim to deepen EU-Switzerland cooperation by reinforcing the role of European local and regional authorities and the Swiss cantons as key partners in multi-level governance. In full respect of Swiss federalism, we urge to focus on shared priorities, mobility, infrastructure and the Schengen area, so that citizens in cross-border regions who work across the frontier benefit from constructive decisions taken at the most appropriate level."

Background:

• Debate at the European Committee of the Regions, 15 October 2025: Video, photos, opinion factsheet.
• The EU-Swiss bilateral agreements currently pending ratification cover many areas in which cooperation between sub-national governments is required, including: cross-border services and labour markets, ensuring mobility for workers, students and entrepreneurs; environmental protection and biodiversity; civil protection and emergency services; energy cooperation; and research, innovation. During the CoR debate on 15 October, particular emphasis was placed on the need for effective cooperation on labour mobility, infrastructure, cross-border public services, border management, biodiversity, as well as on the need for 'active subsidiarity', to ensure that sub-national levels play a central role in shaping potential agreements with a strong territorial dimension.
• Fifteen of the 26 Swiss cantons border regions in the European Union, including Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria in Germany, Vorarlberg and the Tyrol in Austria, Lombardy, South Tyrol, Piedmont, and the Aosta Valley in Italy, and Rhône-Alpes, Franche-Comté, and Grand Est in France.
• Examples of EU-Swiss cross-border cooperation cited during the debate on 15 October were Interreg programmes, the Conference of the Upper Rhine, Regio Insubrica, the Lake Constance Conference, and Arge Alp projects.