1.

Recommends the following to the Council, the Commission and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy: (a) highlights that Switzerland and the EU enjoy a close, broad and comprehensive partnership, which is mutually beneficial and based on joint cultural history and shared values, and that economic, political, social, environmental, scientific and people-to-people ties and links are exemplary, recalling the unique cultural and geographical proximity between the two; (b) stresses that Switzerland is highly integrated with the EU, is a similarly-minded partner and shares European regional and global challenges with the EU; welcomes the Swiss statement that it is in their interest to renew and consolidate the bilateral approach and to forge an ever-closer relationship; (c) notes that the EU is Switzerland’s main trading partner, accounting for 52 % of its exports and over 71 % of its imports, and that the trade in goods under the current bilateral trade agreements amounts to no less than CHF 1 billion per day (13); whereas Switzerland is the EU’s third-largest trading partner, accounting for 7 % of its trade; considers that Switzerland’s significant degree of integration with the EU internal market is a key factor for economic growth, making the EU Switzerland’s most important economic and trading partner; (d) highlights that the EU has shown great flexibility in the negotiations for the Institutional Framework Agreement (IFA) and that this must be recognised by all parties concerned; (e) urges the conclusion of the bilateral IFA as soon as possible with the aim of bringing coherence to the existing complex set of bilateral agreements including establishing a dispute settlement mechanism; welcomes the agreement by the negotiators on the final text of the agreement; calls on the Swiss Federal Council to take a decision to conclude the agreement as soon as the consultation of stakeholders has been positively concluded in this respect; (f) recalls that the establishment of a common institutional framework for existing and future agreements that enable Switzerland’s participation in the EU single market, in order to ensure homogeneity and legal certainty for citizens and businesses, remains a precondition for the further development of a sectoral approach; stresses that after four years of negotiations, the time has come to conclude the IFA; considers that the agreement’s conclusion will enable the EU-Swiss comprehensive partnership to develop to its full potential; (g) acknowledges the need for an IFA, as the EU-Switzerland relationship is based on a complex system of 120 sector-specific agreements, and additional coherence and legal certainty would benefit all parties; (h) calls on the parties to organise as soon as possible an interparliamentary meeting of legislators from both the EU and Switzerland in order to discuss all matters related to this agreement; (i) expresses its regret at the fact that the Commission only transmitted the negotiated text of the EU-Switzerland IFA to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and International Trade on 6 February 2019, despite the fact that it was finalised in November 2018; (j) acknowledges that the strong relations between the EU and Switzerland go beyond economic integration and the extension of the single market, contributing to stability and prosperity to the benefit of all citizens and businesses, including small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs); underlines the importance of ensuring the proper functioning of the single market in order to create a level playing field and create jobs; (k) considers that securing an IFA with Switzerland is of great importance, since it would guarantee legal certainty for both Switzerland and the EU, dynamic incorporation of the EU acquis, enhanced access to the internal market for Switzerland to the benefit of both sides, and the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the event of unresolved disputes relating to the application or interpretation of the IFA; (l) Welcomes the Commission’s decision of 20 December 2018 to recognise trading venues in Switzerland as eligible for compliance with the trading obligation for shares set out in the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (14) and Regulation (15) (MiFID II/MiFIR); stresses that this equivalence is limited to 30 June 2019, but can be extended provided that progress has been made towards the signature of an agreement establishing that common institutional framework; (m) stresses, alongside the Council, that the free movement of persons is a fundamental and non-negotiable pillar of EU policy and the internal market, and that the four freedoms of the internal market are indivisible; expresses regret at the disproportionate one-sided ‘flanking measures’ of Switzerland, which have been in force since 2004; invites Switzerland, which considers that the flanking measures are important, to seek a solution which is fully compatible with the relevant EU instruments; calls on Switzerland also to consider shortening the period of application of the transitional measures concerning workers from Croatia, bearing in mind benefits of the free movement of persons between the EU and Switzerland; (n) notes the implementation of the ‘domestic preference light’ initiative, and that the Council considers that the resultant text adopted on 16 December 2016 by the Swiss Federal Assembly can be implemented in a manner compatible with the rights of EU citizens under the FMPA if the necessary implementing ordinance clarifies outstanding open issues, such as the right to information as regards vacancies and respect for frontier workers’ rights; recalls, however, that the question of migration of citizens from third countries should not be confused with the free movement of persons as enshrined in the Treaties; underlines the need to monitor the implementation of the ordinance closely with a view to assessing its compliance with the FMPA; (o) underlines that Switzerland strongly benefits from democratic and competitive development throughout its European neighbours and that its financial contributions to programmes such as the Cohesion Fund are therefore in its own interest and should be continued, and welcomes the positive results of the contribution in the receiving Member States; recalls that Switzerland draws significant benefits from participating in the single market; stresses that the future Swiss contribution to EU cohesion is essential and should be stepped up considerably, in line with the example set by the EEA/Norway; (p) welcomes the intense internal debate on cooperation with the EU that is taking place in Switzerland; suggests, however, that Switzerland try to even better communicate to its citizens the many tangible benefits of having access to the internal market and the need for closer cooperation with the EU; (q) urges that once concluded, the IFA be submitted without delay to the European Parliament, the Member States, and the Swiss Parliament for approval, and to the Swiss electorate in a referendum, in accordance with the Swiss constitution; (r) notes that 1,4 million EU citizens live in Switzerland, whereas over 450 000 Swiss nationals live in the EU; (s) recalls that following the referendum of 9 February 2014, the Swiss Parliament passed an amendment to the Foreign Nationals Act in 2016 for the implementation of Article 121a of the Federal Constitution, with entry into force on 1 July 2018; stresses that it is essential that the Federal Council pay careful attention to implementing Article 121a so as to not jeopardise the right of EU citizens to free movement; (t) regrets any cantonal or national initiative that could have the effect of restricting access to the Swiss labour market for EU workers, in particular cross-border workers, thereby undermining the rights of EU citizens under the FMPA and cooperation between the EU and Switzerland; (u) strongly welcomes the political declaration of intent to modernise the Agreement on Government Procurement and the 1972 EU-Switzerland Free Trade Agreement, and supports the ambition of achieving a revised trade partnership that includes areas such as services that are beyond the scope of the IFA and only partially covered through the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons (FMPA), including digital aspects, intellectual property rights, trade facilitation, mutual recognition of conformity assessments and public procurement, in addition to a chapter on trade and sustainable development; requests further cooperation in order to better protect geographical indications and expand the modern and reliable State-to-State dispute settlement mechanism included in the draft IFA to cover the future bilateral trade relationship and efficiently resolve trade irritants between the parties; (v) is aware that there is no comprehensive services agreement in place between the EU and Switzerland and that services are only partially covered through the FMPA, showing that there is potential for further development; (w) tales note of the revised law on public procurement adopted in 2017 in the canton of Ticino that is to be compliant with the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Government Procurement and the relevant EU-Switzerland sectoral agreement, which entered into force in 2002; strongly encourages contracting authorities to treat EU suppliers and service providers in a non-discriminatory way, even in cases of procurement contracts below the threshold; (x) urges that the current practice whereby taxi firms from EU Member States can provide services in Switzerland without restriction be allowed to continue, as it has long contributed to economic development in Swiss border regions and is mutually beneficial; (y) takes the view that reciprocity and fairness between the EEA and Switzerland are necessary to enable both sides to benefit from their participation in the single market; (z) notes that in overall terms, cooperation under the EU-Switzerland agreement on mutual recognition in relation to conformity assessment (MRA) is satisfactory; welcomes the most recent update of the MRA in 2017 and hopes that forthcoming updates can be carried out swiftly when the future institutional framework agreement has been developed to its full potential; (aa) welcomes the new tax legislation that will restrict preferential tax regimes and bring practices closer to international standards, and hopes for a positive outcome from the upcoming popular vote in Switzerland; underlines the need to continue improving cooperation in order to fight tax avoidance and enhance tax justice; (ab) calls on Switzerland to continue its work on the Digital Switzerland strategy, aiming to have it align with the EU digital single market; (ac) acknowledges the contribution to the close EU-Swiss partnership that the bilateral sectoral agreements on free movement of persons, pensions, environment, statistics, judicial and police cooperation, Schengen area, asylum (Dublin), the CFSP/CSDP, satellite navigation, research, civil aviation, overland transport, reciprocal market access for agreed goods and services, processed agricultural goods, legal harmonisation, mutual recognition, the fight against fraud, and taxation and savings bring; urges, however, that it is high time to elevate the partnership and take a much more comprehensive and substantial step in bilateral relations by concluding the framework agreement as soon as possible; (ad) welcomes the fact that, for a very long time, the promotion of peace, mediation and peaceful conflict resolution have been an important part of Swiss foreign policy; welcomes Switzerland’s strong role in peace building and its involvement in helping to find solutions to crises, dialogue-facilitation, the development of confidence-building measures and reconciliation; welcomes the Swiss role as a facilitator in implementing complex federal structures and peace-brokered, constitutional arrangements, in order to ease the coexistence of different ethnic backgrounds; (ae) welcomes the participation of Switzerland in and its support for EU security and defence missions, such as in EUFOR ALTHEA, EULEX Kosovo, EUTM Mali and EUBAM Libya, and in the work of the European Defence Agency; welcomes the close cooperation with Switzerland on humanitarian aid, civil protection, counter-terrorism and climate change; (af) acknowledges the Swiss contribution and cooperation in the context of mass migration to the Schengen area and in the implementation of the European Agenda on Migration; encourages Switzerland to become part of the Global Compact for Migration and expects this to happen following the debate in the Swiss Parliament; (ag) calls on Switzerland to apply the relevant EU directives in order to maintain its current level of social protection and level of wages, when it comes to cross-border offering of services; (ah) stresses the importance of ensuring that the IFA between the EU and Switzerland contains a tax good governance clause including specific rules on State aid in the form of tax advantages, transparency requirements regarding the automatic exchange of information on taxation and beneficial ownership, and anti-money laundering provisions; (ai) welcomes Switzerland’s decision to join the Europol Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce (J-CAT) in April 2018, as a proactive step in its fight against international cybercrime threats; (aj) welcomes Switzerland’s association to the entire Horizon 2020 programme and hopes for further cooperation in future research programmes; (ak) urges Switzerland to engage in negotiating its association to the Erasmus programmes; (al) welcomes progress in the construction of the transalpine rail link known as the ‘New Railway Link through the Alps’ (NRLA/ NEAT), a Swiss funded investment which is also beneficial to the EU;