Just over 60 000 foreigners immigrated to Switzerland in 2021, that is roughly the same as the previous year and down from 2013 when the number was at 81 000. It is still too much according to the SVP (right wing) political party who are planning a new motion to curb immigration. Meanwhile the rest of the political factions are worried that not enough foreigners are coming to help fill the job vacancies in the country. It will be interesting to see which narrative makes the headlines in the coming months. Too many or not enough foreigners?
Unemployment in the canton of Lucerne went down in 2021 by 34% compared to the previous year. Only 3859 people were registered as being unemployed in December 2021. However more companies went bust. 165 companies registered for bankrupcy compared to 149 the previous year.
Tuesday 22.2.2022 seems to have become the most popular day for people wishing to get married this year. Several registry offices in the canton are fully booked which is unusual for a Tuesday. However people wishing to marry on that date do not need to despair as several towns still have availabilities, and worst case 2.2.2022 is also a good option.
There are many crazy physical challenges one can do on this planet and, surely, one of the craziest is to row across the atlantic in a small row boat. There is a race called the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Rowing Challenge which began mid-December with people rowing either on their own or in teams of up to 5 people from in La Gomera on the Canary Islands to Antigua in the Caribbean. Yesterday the first boat arrived and it was a Swiss team who managed won the overall competition, well done Team “Swiss Raw”. The race is far from over and there still are several boats out there, including two women from central Switzerland rowing on their boat Prowject X. You can follow them by going to their website or the official race website here.
This week will be cold and grey below, sunny above. Have a nice week.
