Rigour and growth: the debate on federal accounts

In recent years, the Confederation's accounts have frequently closed with better results than forecast. 2025 confirms this trend: despite a budgeted deficit, the final balance recorded a significant surplus. This dynamic has reignited the debate on the formulation of federal estimates and the role of the debt brake in Swiss financial policy.

Prof. Fabrizio Mazzonna, Professor at the Faculty of Economics at USI and Director of the Institute of Economics (IdEP), offered a key perspective when interviewed by RSI on the phenomenon. (Italian only)

In his remarks, the professor explained that the Confederation tends to underestimate revenue and overestimate expenditure out of prudence. This is a technical choice, but also a political one, linked to the constitutional principle of the debt brake, introduced in 2001, which mandates the avoidance of structural deficits over the long term. In a system that prohibits closing "in the red", forecasts tend toward a level of caution that could limit the resources available for the country's future challenges.

The professor pointed out that Switzerland stands out in Europe for having one of the lowest levels of public debt on the continent, the result of a rigorous and widely supported financial framework. However, he urged a distinction between current expenditure and strategic investments: in an era of international uncertainty, excessive caution could result in the abandonment of priority investments in infrastructure, education, and research, areas central to the country's competitiveness and future growth.