In a speech given on Tuesday 22 January, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced that if re-elected in 2015, in the next term he would hold a referendum on British membership of the European Union. Mr Cameron explained that if Brussels would not introduce reforms of its current structure as well as accept serious budget cuts, he would ask the British people whether they wanted to stay in the EU.
Though the UK has often found itself at odds with the rest of the EU, there seems to be widespread surprise that he would actually go as far as to threaten to leave. The promise was given just a few days before Mr. Cameron visited Davos and shortly before the Union is to continue negotiations on its future budget, negotiations which had to be aborted last year because of the demands made by the British government.
As Switzerland is not a member of the EU, the actions of the UK in this respect should be of little consequence. The existing good relationship between the two countries is further strengthened by numerous bilateral agreements, the oldest one dating back to 1846. However, the close relationship between the EU and Switzerland would almost certainly force the EU to re-negotiate this relationship as Switzerland could turn into a hub for British goods and services if the UK chooses to opt-out. Following a "yes" to leave the union, the easy access to the EU that British companies have today would be made more difficult, leaving open the possibility of using Switzerland as a way into the European market. Whatever action the Union decided to take to prevent this development, the outcome would jeopardise the currently strong position of the Swiss economy, possibly the strongest in Europe today.
The long standing relationship between the two countries plays an important role in both countries' economies as trade between Switzerland and the UK is strong and therefore, a lot is at stake. According to UK Trade and Investment, Switzerland is the 4th largest non-EU market for the UK with the Swiss buying services worth an estimated £9.4bn per year. Furthermore, Switzerland enjoys an unemployment rate close to 3.5% and even in Geneva, which has struggled with an unemployment rate well over the national average, the unemployment rate seems to be falling, according to statistics for December 2012 from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs.
