President of France confirms closure of Fessenheim power plant
French president Emmanuel Macron has confirmed the announced closure of the Alsace nuclear power plant Fessenheim, 40 kilometres north of Basel.
President Macron, who hosted Tuesday's Paris climate summit, said that Fessenheim will "be closed down for good".
“I keep my promise. I will not pedal back,” he said in an interview with daily newspaper, “Le Monde”. The French president did not name a specific date for the closure in this interview.
Macron does not rule out the closure of other nuclear power plants, but added that such a step should not result in an increase of climate-damaging greenhouse gasses.
Environmental activists have for years regarded the Fessenheim nuclear power plant as a safety risk and call for its closure. The previous French government had agreed to close Fessenheim last April – but the power plant will close down only when a new atomic plant will be connected to the grid in Flamanville near the English Channel. The construction of this new power plant could be finished at the end of 2018.
Roche increases payrolls in Switzerland by 0,75 per cent
Roche will increase the pay for its 14,000 employees working in Switzerland in the coming year. Set at 0,75 per cent, however, the increased rate for 2018 is below the 0,9 ratio granted in the two preceding years.
In a statement on Tuesday, a Roche spokesperson said the social partners on this occasion could not reach an agreement on the extent of the increase. However, the Basel pharmaceutical firm insisted that the negotiations with the Roche employee associations Roche (AVR) and the workers’ commission Roche Basel (AKR) had been conducted in an engaged, fair, and constructive manner on both sides.
The increase for 2018 follows the recognition of the strong commitment of the company’s employees. The market comparison of the payrolls as well as the increase costs of living have also been taken into account, the firm said. The increase sets the frame for individual, performance-linked payroll adjustments as of 1 April 2018.
City tax for tourists in Basel is now 4 Swiss francs per night
From next year, the canton of Basel-Stadt will increase the city tax from 3.50 Swiss francs to 4 francs per night. The government has agreed to the regulation of the new city tax law.
The new law (approved by the Grand Council in October 2017 and set to be implemented on 1 January 2018) sets a new range for the city tax between 3.60 francs and 4 francs. The exact value complies with additional guest service and the costs for the mobility ticket, which allows visitors to travel for free on public transport. The city tax was last increased in 2011.
The government also approved three contracts which strengthen their work with Basel Tourism and establish a new basis for cooperation, according to an announcement on Tuesday. Next to a framework agreement, this is a contract that regulates the application of city tax revenues.
Basel Tourism has therefore been granted the authority to implement the city tax law. This is to offer more entrepreneurial freedom with additional financial support. With the third contract, the government suggests to the Grand Council that Basel Tourism should receive an unchanged annual grant of 1,9 million francs for the years 2018-2021.