Swiss motorists are dumping their waste in Germany; unemployment among university graduates is rising sharply; plus more news in our roundup this Friday.
Swiss motorists are dumping their waste in Germany
While Germans welcome shopping tourists from Switzerland, they are not as happy about the cross-border ‘waste tourism’.
The Lörrach district, which lies just outside Basel, is reporting ‘unauthorised waste deliveries ” by cars with Swiss licence plates, which leave their trash at the local recycling centres.
According to the district authorities, using a recycling centre by non-residents constitutes a regulatory offence and is subject to a fine.
For the time being, however, the waste management department is focusing primarily on raising awareness. However, if cross-border trash dumping continues, officials said they would involve customs authorities to deal with Swiss offenders as they drive back to Switzerland.
And more from Germany…
Deutsche Bahn’s least punctual train departs from Switzerland
Deutsche Bahn (DB) trains between Germany and Switzerland are chronically unpunctual and a new analysis reveals on which routes the delays are worst.
This title goes to the DB train from Zurich to Munich, which is late… 85.6 percent of the time. Not only that, but these trains regularly arrive behind schedule in the opposite direction as well -that is, from Munich to Zurich.
The official reason: Deutsche Bahn has been forced to reduce speeds on several sections of this route due to “defects in the [German] rail network.”
READ MORE: Switzerland suspends Deutsche Bahn trains due to chronic delays
Unemployment among university graduates is rising sharply
Though the common perception is that higher education is a guarantee of a successful career, this is not the case.
According to new data from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), the unemployment rate among graduates of universities and universities of applied sciences in Switzerland rose noticeably between 2023 and 2025.
For individuals holding a master’s degree, the unemployment rate rose from 3.9 to 6.4 percent one year after graduation.
For those with a bachelor’s degree, the rate increased from 3.4 to 4.9 percent.
Government supports greater protection against price hikes for digital subscriptions
The Federal Council supports a motion submitted by MP Alex Farinelli; which calls for stronger consumer protection regarding digital subscriptions that renew automatically – such as those for streaming services or online platforms.
Under his proposal, unilateral price increases would only be permitted if based on transparent criteria and disclosed in the contract beforehand.
General clauses allowing for price hikes that are insufficiently defined or unjustified would be deemed abusive.
Furthermore, anyone affected by a significant unilateral price increase would be entitled to withdraw from the contract free of charge.
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