News
New plant protection products must be approved more quickly. Following in the footsteps of the House of Representatives, the Swiss Senate approved a parliamentary proposal on Thursday by 31 votes to 12, calling for pesticides approved in Europe to be approved in Switzerland too.
The proposal provides for a simplified authorisation procedure for plant protection products already approved in Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Austria. It is the result of an initiative by Philipp Matthias Bregy from the Centre party.
The Swiss authorities should only control these products in areas where Switzerland has special protection provisions, such as water protection. Werner Salzmann from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party argued that plant protection products should be approved more quickly in Switzerland as a matter of urgency.
Emergency approval
The Senate only amended the draft with regard to emergency registrations. They are calling for emergency registrations to be granted automatically only if the legal provisions for the protection of humans, animals and the environment in the country of origin of the plant protection product are equivalent to Swiss law.
Left-wing parties were opposed to the project as a whole, arguing hat the aim of the initiative has already been achieved. A fast-track authorisation procedure by ordinance, which guarantees that the level of protection is maintained, has already been in place since December 2025. They also argued that the text fails to take sufficient account of public health and nature conservation.
The dossier will now go back to the House of Representatives.
