After voters in the canton opposed the idea, Zurich’s social director is now planning to go it alone. The SVP is outraged.
If the canton decides otherwise, the city’s social director Raphael Golta will plan on his own.
Michael Buholzer / Keystone
Raphael Golta didn’t give himself two weeks. On the Sunday before last, the canton of Zurich clearly said no with 54 percent to a change in the scholarship system: Foreigners temporarily admitted should continue to have to wait five years before they can apply for state training grants. That was the clear verdict of the cantonal electorate.
But the city of Zurich’s social leader thinks little of this referendum. As Golta tells the Tamedia newspapers in an interview, he is now examining a city solution on his own.
The city of Zurich approved the desired change in the education law with almost 65 percent. Golta sees this as a mission. “I want to make the city scholarships also accessible to those temporarily admitted,” says the SP man. The clear yes in the city is the political legitimacy for this. “We would have preferred a cantonal solution, but that’s just not coming now.” The city already has its own scholarship system, which complements the cantonal one. Golta now wants to expand this.
Referendum is likely
In the city of Zurich there are around 750 temporarily admitted people, i.e. asylum seekers who have received a negative decision but cannot be deported. Golta estimates that around fifty people will ultimately be eligible for the city scholarships. “We expect annual expenses of 500,000 to 800,000 francs,” he says in an interview. Compared to the total budget of 8 million francs in the municipal scholarship area, this is a “very small share”.
The Social Democrat does not see the fact that his actions are undermining a cantonal referendum as a problem. The refugee system in the canton of Zurich is largely regulated locally. It is not unusual for a lower level to take its own measures – “if they pay for them themselves”.
Golta is now working on changing the scholarship regulations. It is scheduled to come to the city parliament in the first half of 2025. A referendum is possible – and very likely.
The SVP, which has already resisted a change at the cantonal level, will probably do the same in the city. When asked, SVP co-president Susanne Brunner said: “We will check whether we can stop Golta’s plans through political and legal means.” The question arises as to whether the social director’s actions are legally tenable.
Golta wants to ignore a democratic referendum, criticizes Brunner. “That is highly undemocratic.” The city of Zurich is part of the canton of Zurich and cannot place itself above cantonal laws or referendums. “If all communities behaved like the city, anarchic chaos would reign in the canton of Zurich.”
Rolling election campaign
It is not the first time that Raphael Golta has brought himself into conversation with idiosyncratic socio-political actions. He had previously suggested “basic assistance” for undocumented migrants as well as a heating subsidy and public transport vouchers for low-income people. A left-wing newspaper even said that he pursued “the most exciting social policy in Switzerland”.
Golta’s latest prank could also have something to do with the upcoming election campaign in the city of Zurich. The SP man is said to have ambitions to succeed long-term city president Corine Mauch – should she resign in spring 2026.
When asked about this, Golta says: “I’m not currently dealing with this question.” He is a passionate executive politician and wants to continue to shape the future. “In what capacity, I will decide in due course.”
