President is both the chief of the state and head of the government. The post is purely ceremonial and by tradition rotates annually among the seven members of the Federal Council for one-year term.The Federal Council is a seven-member executive council (cabinet) that heads the executive branch, with its members being elected by country’s parliament for a four-year term. Under the constitution of Switzerland the make-up of the government is not determined by parliamentary majority but in accordance with a four-party power-sharing agreement (established in 1959) and known as the "magic formula".
Legislative Power
The legislature in Switzerland is bicameral. The parliament called Federal Assembly consists of: Council of States (the upper house) having 46 seats, with 2 members selected from each of the 20 cantons (states/provinces) and 1 from each of the six half-canton to serve four-year terms and the National Council (the lower house) having 200 seats, with its members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms. The executive branch of government is directly or indirectly dependent on the support of the parliament, often expressed through a vote of confidence. The federal legislative power is vested in both the government and the parliament.
Main political parties
Switzerland has a multi-party system, where a single party has little chance of gaining power alone. Thus, parties work with each other to form coalition governments. The major parties in the country are:
SVP (Swiss People's Party) – populist right-wing, with a strong base in German-speaking areas of Switzerland, SP (Social Democratic Party) – centre-left, CVP (Christian Democratic Party) - centre-right, Green Party - left-wing environmentalist, its motto "think globally, act locally."
Current political leaders
President: Eveline WIDMER-SCHLUMPF(since 1 January 2012) Vice President: Ueli MAURER (since 1 January 2012)
Next election dates
Presidential:December 2012 (conducted on yearly basis) Council of States: Not available (each canton decides its own election dates) National Council:October 2015
Living conditions
Health and safety
Health precautions
There is no mandatory vaccination required. However it is advisable to take tetanus, diphtheria and polio vaccinations.
Embassy of Greece in Switzerland Laubeggstrasse 3006 Bern Phone: (004131) 3561 414, 3561410-11 Fax: 3681272 thisseas@iprolink.ch
Emergency numbers
Police
117
Medical
144
Fire
118
Rescue by helicopter
1414 / 1415
Telephone support for children
147
Road emergency
140
Time difference and climate
Time and time difference
It is %T:%M %A in Geneva, Bern, Lausanne (GMT+1 in winter, GMT+2 in summer)
Summer time period
Yes
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October.
Map of the time zone
Type of climate
The Alps mountains cause climatic variations across the country. In the higher Alpine regions temperatures tend to be low, while the lower land of the northern area has higher temperatures and warm summers.
The temperature can go as low as -10 degree centigrade during winter and during summer it reaches up to 25 degree centigrade.
