The section of Währinger Straße at the square is to become a pedestrian zone. Motor traffic in both directions would be routed along the Gentzgasse side. The plan also includes delivery access and a loading zone for businesses, as well as a disabled parking space and a short-stay area for quick shopping.

Further details include bicycle stands, hammocks, a public bookcase and hopscotch games for children. A small stage for readings and concerts is intended to help turn the square into a meeting place. Planting beds and 25 new trees would provide additional greenery.

Costs will now be estimated on the basis of the plan. Implementation still requires approval from the Währing district council, with construction potentially beginning next year.

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The affected farms include 20 breeding operations in six cantons and 40 fattening farms in 16 cantons. The farms belong to a pig-ring association, a network of agricultural businesses.

The Veterinary Service of the canton of Lucerne was informed of the outbreak on September 9 on behalf of the Swiss Veterinary Service. The pathogen Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae was detected in pigs showing suspected symptoms including coughing and fever.

A ban restricting the movement of animals has been imposed across all farms in the affected association to prevent further spread. The restrictions could lead to shortages of space for housing the animals.

The affected cantons and the federal government are conducting extensive investigations to determine the full extent of the outbreak. Switzerland was considered largely free of the disease after a campaign to eradicate it between 1996 and 2004.

Pig farmers have been urged to implement biosecurity measures consistently. The pathogen can also be transmitted through the air, but the disease poses no danger to people.

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Almost 98 percent of respondents said current resources did not meet children’s needs. Many also criticised schools’ facilities and said there was too little money for necessary equipment.

Teachers said determining whether a child qualifies for special educational support can take one to two years, according to Franz Bicek of the FSG faction of the compulsory-school teachers’ union. Some children receive inadequate support during that period, while some parents pay for services themselves.

The transition from kindergarten to primary school can be particularly difficult. Melanie Wohlfarter, a teacher from the Braunau district, said schools in children’s home communities sometimes could not provide the necessary support, or could provide it only inadequately. The children then had to attend school in a neighbouring municipality and leave their familiar surroundings.

Christian Jedinger of the younion union called for more staff, including additional teachers and classroom assistants. He proposed a provisional classification of support needs, similar to the system used in long-term care, so children could receive assistance before a final medical assessment.

Until they receive a formal classification, children are currently treated as regular pupils, said staff representative Margit Sageder, who worked in education for many years. She said this resulted in valuable time being lost.

SPÖ state parliament member Doris Margreiter warned that a lack of support could have longer-term consequences, including possible school suspensions. Under current conditions, she said, teachers could not always provide the assistance individual children needed.

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The incident took place in September 2023 at Graz-Karlau prison. The man was accused of seriously injuring and raping his cellmate, allegedly choking him with a belt.

In an initial trial in April, the court found that the case could involve attempted murder and issued a decision declaring it lacked jurisdiction. The case was heard by a jury court on Wednesday on charges of attempted murder and rape, alongside an application for the man to be placed again in a forensic-therapeutic centre.

The defendant, who has been in a forensic-therapeutic centre since 2012, had known the alleged victim for some time. They had been held together under the custodial measures system and later shared a cell at Graz-Karlau.

He admitted responsibility only for bodily harm. His lawyer said the defendant was responsible for the injuries but was not a murderer, describing the incident as an escalation of an argument and denying that sexual acts had taken place.

The public was excluded after the opening statements. The court had not yet made the verdict legally binding on Wednesday evening.

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Heavy rain, hail and strong gusts caused most of the incidents in the Innviertel. The first storms reached the region at about 3:30 p.m., initially affecting the districts of Ried, Grieskirchen and Eferding.

Strong winds caused particular problems in the district of Ried. The Ried im Innkreis fire brigade was called out several times within minutes after trees fell onto roads and houses.

Heavy rain also flooded roads and buildings in Gurten and Aurolzmünster.

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The differences are linked to Switzerland’s federal system: the cantons are responsible for assessing forest fire danger. The Federal Office for the Environment’s national map can therefore appear as a patchwork of different levels.

In St Gallen, representatives of the building insurance authority, fire services, the military office, cantonal communications department, civil protection and municipalities meet weekly to assess the situation, according to Joel Rodi, deputy head of civil protection in the canton. Local foresters also provide assessments. During periods of acute danger, the meetings are held more frequently.

The assessment uses forest fire indexes, which are computer models that analyse soil moisture, air humidity, wind and precipitation before issuing a recommendation. Local foresters then assess conditions in the five forest regions of St Gallen, including the moisture deeper in the soil and the amount of combustible material, such as leaves and dry branches, on the ground.

Despite coordination with neighbouring cantons, different levels can apply at the same time in the same area along a cantonal border. St Gallen itself can also have different levels in different places, partly because of variations in topography.

Rodi said people should not rely solely on the danger level. It indicates the potential for a forest fire, while the specific measures in force, such as a ban on fires, are also important. St Gallen’s cantonal fire ban was lifted at the beginning of September, leaving municipalities to decide their own restrictions. Rodi said the disadvantage was that each municipality could then have different rules, making communication more difficult.

The federal government plans to standardise the assessment by 2028. The Federal Office for the Environment is working with the cantons on the change and is expected to receive greater powers. The planned system will use the Nearest Fire Day, developed by the Federal Office for the Environment, the Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research and the cantons. Cantonal assessments will continue to be considered, while the cantons will remain responsible for measures such as fire bans.

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Preparations for the summer project will now continue, including the final applications to the authorities. Construction of the first bike park trails could begin as early as this autumn, Schwärzler said.

The ski area’s future had remained uncertain at the end of August. At a general meeting of the Alpe Gemeine Brongen and Tristen agricultural association, the required majority for the contracts with Sutterlüty was narrowly missed. At the time, this was also said to mean that winter operations could not continue.

The association’s approval was required for the planned year round operation combining the ski area and bike park. The summer bike park concept had received overwhelming support at a March meeting, but the vote changed in August.

The alpine pasture tenant said at the time that opponents were mainly concerned about the 20 year contract term. He also said another investor had reportedly expressed interest in continuing the ski area during winter only, which would have suited the alpine pasture association. Sutterlüty strongly rejected that account, saying the alternative proposal had only been raised as an idea and had never become a viable offer.

Sutterlüty said in August that his plans had broad support. Nearly all affected landowners and alpine pasture associations had signed the required agreements or granted the necessary rights, he said, with about 70 agreements concluded or prepared. He added that he had reached a prior informal agreement with the association’s board and operator.

At the subsequent general meeting, 58 percent and 60 percent of grazing rights supported the two contracts, according to Sutterlüty. They failed only because the association’s rules required a two thirds majority. The latest approval removes that obstacle and allows the year round project at Schetteregg to proceed.

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The inclusion law is the indirect counterproposal to the initiative submitted by disability organisations. The initiative calls for stronger equality for people with disabilities in all areas of life and at every level of legislation. The Federal Council’s bill seeks to address these demands.

After criticism, the Federal Council revised its counterproposal. The National Council’s Committee for Science, Education and Culture added further provisions in line with demands from the political left and the initiative’s sponsors.

More than 30 minority proposals have been submitted by both the centre-right and the left. The committee wants to make it easier for people with disabilities to enter the mainstream labour market and strengthen their economic independence. It also proposes targeted support for training opportunities and stronger tools such as job coaching.

The committee majority further wants to increase the number of monthly assistance hours available to people requiring support in the mainstream labour market to 90. It also wants to strengthen assistance services provided by third parties.

Islam Alijaj said that people who can receive the support they need only in a residential institution cannot freely choose how they live. He called for conditions that would allow more people to find their place in society.

Katharina Prelicz-Huber of the Green Party said the counterproposal contained many advances. The minority proposals from the left would bring the inclusion law closer to the initiative, she said, although the initiative was clearer and more binding.

Laurence Fehlmann Rielle of the Social Democratic Party said people with disabilities needed not only to have rights but also to be able to exercise them. Gabriela Suter, also a Social Democrat, said it was not enough to provide information, such as at a railway station about a cancelled train. The information also had to reach people with visual impairments.

Jean Tschopp of the Social Democratic Party said progress on the freedom of choice enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was slow. Marie-France Roth Pasquier of the Centre party said the counterproposal represented significant improvements and that the committee had incorporated key everyday benefits into the bill.

The FDP wants the draft law to be amended. Regine Sauter criticised it as a wish list with major financial consequences and said it lacked a coherent concept for integrating people with disabilities into the labour market. Employers needed suitable conditions, she said.

Hans Jörg Rüegsegger of the Swiss People’s Party submitted a motion to return the bill to the government for a slimmer proposal. He said the committee’s additions would burden private employers with further regulations and claims without prior consultation.

Katja Stettler-Riem of the Swiss People’s Party questioned whether the federal government really needed to determine how inclusion should be promoted in every area of life. Each new task required administration and each new service required funding, she said.

Philipp Kutter of the Centre party, who uses a wheelchair, said anyone could become disabled. A lack of assistance could mean that affected people and their relatives were able to work less, which also carried a cost. He added that public transport had failed to achieve the goal of accessibility and that regulations were needed in some places to make progress.

The National Council will resume its debate on Monday afternoon.

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Nathaniel Heinritz, head of the association’s Vorarlberg office, attributed the rise to a catch-up effect and problems affecting the state’s economy. Vorarlberg was the only federal state to record a decline in insolvencies last year.

Construction and industry under pressure

Vorarlberg still has the country’s second-lowest insolvency rate per capita, after Tyrol. However, the increase is affecting more than just the construction sector, Heinritz said.

Construction has been weak for most of the year and remains one of the worst-hit sectors. Insolvencies are also rising in manufacturing. Construction, retail and hospitality account for the highest number of cases.

Industry has the highest level of liabilities, at 59 million euros. Of the 168 million euros in total debt, almost one-third is linked to two cases involving textile manufacturer feinjersey in Götzis and bicycle maker Simplon in Hard.

In Simplon’s case, 28 million of its 33 million euros in debt relates to liabilities that resurfaced after its failed restructuring plan in 2024. Feinjersey had also previously been released from debt.

More companies seek restructuring

The number of companies seeking restructuring has also increased. Only two restructuring proceedings were recorded during the whole of last year, while 16 proceedings have already been opened this year.

Heinritz said the cases involved companies that still had substance and a chance to reduce their debt and continue operating.

Three-quarters of the restructuring proceedings are being conducted without self-administration, giving an insolvency administrator greater control over the insolvent company.

Insolvency administrator Tobias Giesinger said many business owners found it difficult to seek help, often waiting until it was too late. He attributed this to the shame of failure, particularly among family businesses in their second, third or fourth generation, as well as the hope that the business could continue. Delaying proceedings can remove the opportunity for owners to restructure the company themselves, he said.

Private insolvencies in Vorarlberg also rose, by 8.4 percent. Heinritz said some people had brought forward their applications because the debt-discharge period was extended again from three to five years.

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Property owners would be allowed to exceed standard building rules in these zones, but at least 40% of newly built homes would have to be affordable. Owners would also need to agree on planning rules, including how local residents could receive priority for the apartments.

The Zug housing market has been severely constrained for years, while prices have risen rapidly. The cantonal government has therefore submitted a comprehensive revision of the Planning and Building Act for consultation as part of its Housing Policy Strategy 2030.

The package is intended to reduce bureaucratic obstacles, speed up procedures and encourage the construction of affordable homes. A white zone would be placed over an existing building zone for a limited period and would allow substantially greater building height and density than normally permitted.

Further concessions could also be introduced in certain residential and mixed-use zones. These could include an additional floor and up to 10% greater development density if an affordable home is built.

Procedures for development plans and building permits would also be simplified and accelerated, while deadlines for appeal proceedings would be shortened. The revised law will now undergo consultation before being considered by the cantonal parliament.

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