"More than 150,000 French citizens cross the border every day to go to work in Switzerland, attracted by higher salaries in all sectors. Many believe they will find an Eldorado there. Reality is not always as one imagines…"
The seminar organised by the Council of Europe was an opportunity to examine cross-border cooperation activity organised around the work of the Basel Trinational Eurodistrict (ETB), the international architecture exhibition IBA Basel 2020 and the Basel Agglomeration programme.
Taking note of the “de Ruyter” decision of the CJEU, “the [French] Government specifies in a communiqué published on 20th October the conditions for the introduction of recovery procedures relating to refunds of social contributions made on capital gains by residents and non-residents who are covered by social security schemes of other Member States of the European Union, the European Economic Area, or Switzerland.”
On 21 September, the players from the Greater Geneva area presented an innovative new tool that makes it possible to monitor air pollution across the cross-border territory: the G²AME (Grand Genève Air Modèle Emissions – Greater Geneva Air Emissions Model) platform.
The New Territorial Organisation of the Republic Act (the "NOTRe Act") was promulgated on 7 August 2015 in France.
Today the Commission officially launched the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP), the fourth EU macro-regional strategy. More than70 million citizens will reap the benefits of a closer cooperation between regions and countries in terms of research and innovation, SME support, mobility, tourism, environmental protection and energy resources management.
For more than twenty years, the Espace Mont Blanc (FR/IT/CH) has been striving to meet the needs for sustainable and balanced development of the Mont Blanc massif and its valleys, in order to protect and promote this emblematic cross-border territory.
On the territory of the French-Swiss Jura Arc, the Doubs Urban Conurbation (Agglomération Urbaine du Doubs – AUD) has launched a cross-border intercultural and intergenerational project aimed at involving the populations and civil society of the French and Swiss municipalities that make it up: Morteau (F), Villers-le-Lac (F), Les Fins (F), La Chaux-de-Fonds (CH), Le Locle (CH) and Les Brenets (CH).
Along France's borders, several INTERREG VA programmes have launched their first calls for projects or are organising their launch events soon.
"France and Switzerland declared their mutual friendship on 15th April 2015, without hiding the frictions between the two countries. François Hollande expressed his concern about national preference with regard to employment. […] During his State visit to Bern, the French president, François Hollande, stated before the seven federal councillors that he was making Greater Geneva a priority issue."
The world’s only binational airport, located in the French-German-Swiss region, the Basel-Mulhouse EuroAirport is an example in terms of cross-border cooperation.
2015 marks the 500th anniversary of the alliance between Mulhouse and the Swiss Confederation. An occasion to throw light on the strength of the historical links as the roots of today’s cross-border cooperation and to celebrate the event by making 2015 "The year of Switzerland in Mulhouse".
According to a study by the INSEE published in February 2015, the number of French people living in France but working abroad has increased by 42% since 1999. The study analyses the different causes and characteristics of the resulting flows.
This study focuses on various effects of international borders on local public transport: How does it impact demand, service offer as well as framework conditions?
On 10 December 2014, the conference entitled "What solutions for cross-border healthcare?" took place at the Assemblée Nationale in Paris. Organised by the Assemblée Nationale's "Border Regions and Workers" study group, with support from the MOT, this conference brought together cross-border healthcare experts and elected representatives from all of France's border areas.
The CESCI, the MOT and INFH co-organised the 2nd European Seminar on cross-border territorial observation on 30 September 2014 at the Institut français de Budapest in Hungary.
The French-Swiss cross-border Employment Forum took place on 18 and 19 September 2014 in Annemasse.
The cross-border statistical observatory for the France-Geneva area has published an analysis of the housing stock and construction on both sides of the border, counting nearly 70,000 additional housing units in 11 years in this cross-border area.
The aim of this guide is to present in a user-friendly manner different services that operate in the French-German context, mainly located in the Upper Rhine region.
The 30th Congress of the European Cross-Border Grouping (Groupement transfrontalier européen – GTE) was held in Annemasse on 30 April, bringing together nearly 1,000 French-Swiss cross-border workers. With 36,000 members, the GTE renewed its confidence in its Chairman Michel Charrat.
With its international borders with Switzerland and Italy, the department of Haute-Savoie, which has been a member of the MOT since 2012, cooperates with the cantons of Geneva, Vaud and Valais, as well as the Val d’Aoste autonomous region, in areas such as transport, territorial development, tourism, education, culture and sport.
The Geneva Games were started in 1940 to enable Swiss sportsmen and -women to take part in international level competitions in spite of the war.
Author: Markus Rieder, Ph.D. (public administration); February 2014, 418p, €65. Published in French.
The Jura Arc Cross-Border Forum is an independent grassroots movement that was founded on 23 January 2007 in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland.
The MOT produced a guidebook entitled “The legal framework for cross-border cooperation. The legal instruments available to cross-border projects” which is aimed at helping cooperation practitioners to choose the legal form that is most appropriate for their needs. The document is available in six languages: French, English, German, Italian, Spanish, Dutch.
