Browse Ledsom, Mark

1-30 out of 30 article(s)

Title	Type	Date	Words
Singing in the rain: Switzerland's national soccer team made a disappointingly early exit from their first European Championship on home soil, but organisers insist that Euro 2008 still brought major gains for the country as a whole.		Aug 1, 2008	1725
Party over? Just eight months on from its stunning success in the national elections, is the Swiss People's Party really on the brink of an equally spectacular collapse?		Jul 1, 2008	1579
A right to discriminate? Switzerland's relations with its foreign residents will be under renewed scrutiny in June as voters consider a controversial proposal that would allow local citizens to hold secret ballots to decide on passport applications.		Jun 1, 2008	1871
Champs or chumps? The 2008 European football championships finally kick off on June 7 when Switzerland meet the Czech Republic in the tournament's opening match in Basel. Not content at merely being good hosts, the Swiss team have said they want to win the event. Current form suggests however that the Alpine nation will have a mountain to climb.	Cover story	Jun 1, 2008	2279
A sigh of relief: the Swiss government was breathing a sigh of (tax) relief in February when voters came out narrowly in favour of proposals to reduce taxes for small- and mid-sized companies. But a bizarre sounding initiative to prevent fighter jets training over tourist resorts was booted sky high.		Apr 1, 2008	1230
The VAT of the land: a government-planned hike in the Swiss Value Added Tax (VAT) on food, books, hotel bills and medical services, is meeting with stiff political opposition. But the finance ministry insists it is actually trying to put more money back in our pockets.		Apr 1, 2008	1671
Facing the fans: Switzerland is hoping that this summer's European football championship will give the country a chance to shake off its grey bankers' image, But the country is taking its efforts to be frivolous very seriously.		Apr 1, 2008	1653
Euro pop: Pop Art, with its brash upfront style and blatant reliance on 'borrowings' from commercial imagery is often perceived as a purely American invention. But an exhibition at Zurich's Kunsthaus museum demonstrates that some of the movement's most important pioneers actually hailed from Europe.		Mar 1, 2008	1590
Green shoots: to continue our look at new faces in high places, Swiss News speaks with Green Party senator Robert Cramer. He explains the significance of his own election success and what his party hopes to achieve as a result of their parliamentary gains.		Feb 1, 2008	1237
All shook up? The December expulsion of controversial justice minister Christoph Blocher provoked expressions of outrage from his right-wing Swiss People's Party and an immediate declaration that it would go into opposition. But in a country not used to confrontational politics, how exactly will the People's Party follow up on that threat--and will the left live to regret December's cleverly-orchestrated coup?		Feb 1, 2008	1461
'Tell' me more: Switzerland's mythical hero William Tell has long been seen as a symbol of freedom, independence and stubborn resistance to tyrannical rulers, but a current exhibition in Bern shows that he is also a propagandist's dream.		Feb 1, 2008	1576
New kids in the House. no less than 70 new parliamentarians will have their say on issues facing Switzerland as the new political year gets underway. Among them will be the country's first black parliamentarian, the first Green politicians in the Senate and a new batch of 30-something women lending a fresh look to the House of Representatives.	Cover story	Jan 1, 2008	1646
On the ball? Five years after the successful bid to stage the 2008 EuroPean football championships with neighbouring Austria, Switzerland is finally waking up to the fact that one of the world's biggest sporting events is just around the corner. So how ready are the Swiss to put on a memorable soccer party, and what challenges still remain?		Jan 1, 2008	1581
Winner takes all? Switzerland's politicians were at the centre of unusual international interest in October as the country held a national election marred by accusations of racism and xenophobia. But it is the cabinet elections on December 12 that will decide just what effect all the fuss will have on the composition of Switzerland's government.		Dec 1, 2007	1292
Bearly moving: for almost 500 years, life has been literally the pits for the captive bears of Bern. But the beasts are soon to be let loose in a new SFr 10 million, 6,500 [m.sup.2] park spreading from their old home down to the riverside.		Nov 1, 2007	1341
A black and white election? Switzerland goes to the polls this month in a general election that could seriously alter the future course of the nation--or not, depending on your political outlook.		Oct 1, 2007	1873
Disability dilemma: Swiss voters will once again be confronted with an emotive issue on June 17 when a referendum aims to overturn controversial cuts in what we spend on the country's disabled.		Jun 1, 2007	1477
Taxing times: a difference of opinion over controversial Swiss tax breaks for foreign companies is threatening to place further strain on the country's already brittle relationship with the European Union. But what is the argument really about, who is in the right, and will they get their way?		Apr 1, 2007	1323
Death warmed up: famous for hating being famous and reputedly as relaxed in her morals as her murderous anti-hero Tom Ripley, American crime writer and long-time Swiss resident Patricia Highsmith is the subject of an intriguing new exhibition that sets out to challenge her reclusive reputation.		May 1, 2006	1504
New year--old arguments? While the New Year is traditionally a time for clean slates and fresh starts, Switzerland's politicians are likely to be confronted in 2006 by many of the same issues that dominated the previous 12 months.		Jan 1, 2006	1600
Extreme appeal: the solitary climber pauses in contemplation of the near-impossible task before him. Suspended below a horizontal overhang with both boots dug into solid ice and his left arm still jammed between them from a previous manoeuvre, he must somehow find enough purchase to launch himself across a three-metre chasm and get a grip on the wall of ice beyond him.		Jan 1, 2006	1125
Formula gOne? Thirteen, years of independent Swiss involvement in Formula One motor racing came to an end in October when the small, privatley-run Sauber team completed their final race at the season-ending Grand Prix in Shanghai.	Interview	Dec 1, 2005	1360
Driving ambition: what began as a neighbourhood car pool is rapidly emerging as one of Switzerland's most innovative and ambitious companies. Swiss News takes a look beneath the bonnet of Mobility.		Oct 1, 2005	1755
Big name cheats boost anti-doping cause: the recent doping admission by Olympic champion Brigitte McMahon--book-ended by charges against other top athletes--is prompting calls for information campaigns targeting young athletes.		Sep 1, 2005	952
Swiss divided on foreign voting rights.		Jul 1, 2005	860
Skating on top of the world.		May 1, 2005	1408
Taking up the reins as Swiss president: being Swiss president must feel like Santa Claus. A middle-aged white man who comes along just once a year, usually arriving unnoticed by the general public.		Jan 1, 2005	1860
Art--an attraction in Bern: Bern's art galleries welcome the world at the 16th annual art gallery weekend--a typically Bernese concept of showcasing its art.		Jan 1, 2005	1127
Sleep milk: young Swiss farmer Bettina Springer has no difficulty getting to sleep at night. But she goes to extraordinary lengths in the early hours of the morning on behalf of those who do.		Oct 1, 2004	797
Carving out a niche: three years after moving to Switzerland, Australian artist Thea Katauskas is making a name for herself, merging mythological figures with images from Swiss daily life.		Aug 1, 2004	1120