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DEFRITENУКР

The content is machine-translated from German and has not been reviewed; the German original is authoritative. Quotations from sources appear in their original language.

Government

Federal Council

The supreme governing and executive authority of the Confederation (Art. 174 of the Federal Constitution): seven members with equal rights, elected for four years by the United Federal Assembly. They decide together and stand by their decisions together.

The membersArt. 175 BV

Viktor Rossi, Bundeskanzler · Chief of staff of the Federal Council, without a vote

Tasks of the collegial bodyPress releases in the last 90 days

Meeting of 18.09.2026All press releases in the chronicle →

  1. Comprehensive approach to security: Federal Council adopts the 2026 Security Policy Strategy

    Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, hybrid threats and critical dependencies pose challenges for the state, the economy and society. With the 2026 Security Policy Strategy, the Federal Council is positioning Switzerland to navigate this environment. The strategic priorities for the coming years are to strengthen resilience, improve capabilities for resistance and protection, and strengthen defence capabilities. On 18 September, the Federal Council took note of the results of the consultation process and approved the Security Policy Strategy. Work has already begun on implementing its 10 objectives and 46 measures.

    Governing and planningLegislationSecurityFull text on admin.ch ↗

  3. OSCE Ministerial Council in Lugano: Armed Forces support and restriction on the use of airspace

    At its meeting on 18 September 2026, the Federal Council approved the deployment of the Armed Forces in a supporting role to assist the civilian authorities with security arrangements during the meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council, which is to be held in Lugano on 3 and 4 December 2026. This deployment, which is subsidiary in nature, complements the security measures put in place by the civilian authorities.

    Foreign affairsSecurityFull text on admin.ch ↗

  4. Bundesverwaltung priorisiert KI-Strategiemassnahmen

    Der Bundesrat wurde in seiner Sitzung vom 18. September 2026 über die Anpassung der Umsetzungsmassnahmen zur KI-Strategie der Bundesverwaltung informiert. Die Bundesverwaltung setzt ihre Strategie fort, muss aber aufgrund der zur Verfügung stehenden Mittel einzelne unterstützende Massnahmen streichen. Die sechs priorisierten Massnahmen unterstützen Ämter bei der Umsetzung ihrer Vorhaben und stellen sicher, dass die Bundesverwaltung KI koordiniert einsetzt. Aktuell laufen beim Bund über 100 KI-Projekte in verschiedenen Anwendungsbereichen.

    Oversight and cantonsin GermanFull text on admin.ch ↗

  5. Rechtliche Verstetigung von praxisintegrierten Fachhochschul-Bachelorstudiengängen

    Der Bundesrat hat am 18. September 2026 das Inkrafttreten von Änderungen im Hochschulförderungs- und -koordinationsgesetz (HFKG) per 1. Januar 2027 beschlossen. Die Änderungen betreffen in erster Linie die Schaffung einer verstetigten Grundlage für praxisintegrierte Studiengänge an Fachhochschulen im Bereich MINT (Mathematik, Informatik, Naturwissenschaften, Technik).

    Implementationin GermanFull text on admin.ch ↗

  7. Bundesrat verbessert die Anwendung des ISOS

    An seiner Sitzung vom 18. September 2026 hat der Bundesrat eine Änderung der Verordnung über das Bundesinventar der schützenswerten Ortsbilder der Schweiz (VISOS) und der Raumplanungsverordnung (RPV) gutgeheissen. Damit werden die Anwendung des ISOS präzisiert sowie die Behandlung zahlreicher Planungs- und Bauvorhaben vereinfacht und beschleunigt. Gleichzeitig hat der Bundesrat die letzte Etappe der Aktualisierung des ISOS im Kanton Graubünden verabschiedet.

    Legislationin GermanFull text on admin.ch ↗

8 more press releases of this meeting in the chronicle →

Duties of the members

Department
Each member heads one of the seven departments and deputises for another. Art. 178 Cst.
Collegiality
Decide together, stand together – even a member who voted against internally. Art. 177 Cst.
Incompatibilities
No other federal or cantonal office, no other profession, no management role in a for-profit company. Art. 144 Cst.
Recusal and official secrecy
Recusal in a conflict of interest; the deliberations are confidential. Art. 20–21 GAOA
Votes
They present the position of the Federal Council and Parliament objectively, transparently and proportionately. Art. 10a PRA
What you do not seeHow the individual members voted in the Federal Council: the deliberations are confidential. schwur.ch shows no individual opinions from the collegial body. Parliament cannot remove the Federal Council during its term; there is no vote of no confidence.

Recommendation and result on popular initiativesArt. 139 BV

For 201 of the 221 popular initiatives put to the vote, the result was what the Federal Council recommended.

acceptedrejected
Accept33
Reject11177
Reject, direct counter-proposal113
Reject, indirect counter-proposal58

Latest votes

  • Für eine soziale Klimapolitik – steuerlich gerecht finanziert (Initiative für eine Zukunft)Reject · rejected · as recommended
  • Für eine engagierte Schweiz (Service-citoyen-Initiative)Reject · rejected · as recommended
  • Für eine verantwortungsvolle Wirtschaft innerhalb der planetaren Grenzen (Umweltverantwortungsinitiative)Reject · rejected · as recommended
  • Für die Zukunft unserer Natur und Landschaft (Biodiversitätsinitiative)Reject, indirect counter-proposal · rejected · as recommended
  • Für Freiheit und körperliche UnversehrtheitReject · rejected · as recommended

All popular initiatives since 1891, as the Federal Chancellery's register lists them. It gives no vote date; the proposal number orders the votes.

Press releases: News Service Bund of the Federal Chancellery, last checked 18.09.2026, 20:27.

Members: admin.ch, retrieved 15.09.2026.

Popular initiatives: Federal Chancellery register (LINDAS), last checked 18.09.2026, 23:27.

Fixed rules read from the title and lead which task a press release belongs to. A release can belong to several tasks, some to none. The assignment is schwur.ch’s, not the Federal Council’s.

Title and lead are shown unaltered as the News Service Bund publishes them. Not an official publication.