Federal MP Guy Parmelin is absent from the SRF Arena

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The subject of the vote was two amendments to tenancy laws. The responsible federal councilor, Guy Parmelin, was conspicuous by his absence. But that didn't stop his party colleague Barabara Steinemann, senior vice-president of the National Assembly, from ruining her own trip to a career camp.

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As the saying goes, Switzerland is a country of sharecroppers. Indeed. 58% of the population lives in rented accommodation. Even Federal Councilor Guy Parmelin is one of them. However, on this voting “stage”, his absence was conspicuous. Although this is about two voting bills that fall within his jurisdiction. To this end, he should seek a yes vote on behalf of the Federal Council. In particular: changes to sublet tenancy law and changes to personal use tenancy law.

Host Sandro Brotz explained at the beginning of the show:

Those present were:

Those who have adopted the “yes” slogan in this plan – namely FDP national MP Olivier Ferrer, center MP Brigitte Hubley-Kohler and senior vice-president national MP Barbara Steinman — chose a simple strategy: they always emphasized that they could not understand why the left took such decisions. The drama about these small changes. Change that benefits everyone. Landlord, tenant, subtenant.

Olivier Feller even believes: “These two templates are good for the general public.” They will bring more transparency, more legal certainty and more fairness. and combating abuse. Specifically the template for sublease changes.

Green national MP Michael Töngi can only shake his head: “Sounds great. Peaceful quiche. It's good for everyone, everyone benefits.” But to understand what the supporters really think, you have to see the whole picture.

The property lobby hopes to push seven separate proposals through parliament this year. Then Töngi chattered:

To Töngi, it's clear: homeowners associations and real estate lobby groups want to weaken tenants' rights.

Töngi likes to use the absence of Federal Councilor Guy Parmelin to support his argument: the Federal Council is absent today not because it does not want to interfere in parliament, but because it does not want to support such proposals. Tungi added:

The other side sought to refute the Federal Council's support for two proposals in the ballot book. Michael Töngi is unimpressed: “By law, the Federal Council must support the opinion of the parliament when voting. However, during the parliamentary debate he strongly opposed both proposals.”

Socialist national MP Jacqueline Badran, who has so far remained unusually calm, interjected: “That's the end of it. We can change the subject.”

Jacqueline Badran immediately clarified why the left is creating “such drama”: The only reason homeowners want to pass these two bills is because they want to make it easier for tenants to be evicted. “Otherwise there is no reason!” Landlords will notice that they can easily raise the rent every time there is a change in tenants. Badran calls:

Steinman, on the other hand, firmly believes that subleasing abuse is a real problem. With media coverage, many cases have come to light. These may just be the “tip of the iceberg.” Moderator Brotz wanted to know what was the basis for her bold thesis. Steinman simply said evasively: “It happens all the time.”

Brotz asked again, asking if she had a phone number. Of course she didn't. Because no one has the numbers. Not even the federal government.

However, Tenants Association lawyer Sarah Brutschin has real-world experience on the matter. She has worked for state arbitration institutions for 25 years. So it can be said:

She did not say there was no abuse of subletting. But if it was a big deal, she'd at least seen cases like this in her legal practice. Something she doesn't have. Bruchin's conclusion:

Still, Steinman stood by her argument, which revealed what she was actually talking about: landlords. Steinman said:

In the background, Badran is already sneezing and clearing his throat. When she was allowed to speak, she said: “Profiting from subletting has been banned!” Supporters only hope it will be easier for people to cancel bookings, so they can get more rewards.

Steinman countered: “Evictions don't lead to rent increases. This is a left-wing populist movement. These minor modifications are completely disproportionate. That's just because you have a new enemy: evil landlords.”

Next is the Airbnb argument from the pro-side, which according to surveys could convince many voters. Töngi seems to never hear this argument again:

Homeowners associations are opposing several cantonal proposals in German-speaking Switzerland that already want to take action against Airbnb.

Feiler doesn't have a smart answer for this. So Brotz had to ask Steinman again in the audience. Their explanation once again reveals what the proponents are really talking about: “If the owner rents out the apartment on AirBnB, then he is also responsible. However, if the tenant does this, the owner no longer controls it and things keep changing. So to speak , the owner then gave it away and we wanted to prevent that from happening.”

So you don’t want to essentially prevent Airbnb from securing increasingly scarce and expensive living space. Owners hope to continue making cash through Airbnb. Only tenants should have a harder time subletting apartments through such platforms. Of course, you can eliminate “competition” this way.

Today, tenants are effectively banned from making money on Airbnb. Just like a property owner has the right to terminate their tenants if they make a profit through Airbnb.

Tonight, Steinman also gave such a cogent answer to a second template designed to create new options for the termination of personal use. She said:

There is nothing more to add.

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