In The war of the Romands set in the year 3115, Capt. John Bonvin comments “there is not a single piece of land in the whole of the Valais that has not been concreted over”. Well it looks like this vision of the future won’t be come to pass. The Swiss have just voted, by the slightest of majorities, to limit the number of second homes that can be built. One notable exception to the vote, the Valais! Over three quarters of Valaisians wanted to continue developing holiday homes in the canton. The vote has immediate effect and will limit the number of second homes to 20% of the total. More at RTS:-

http://www.rts.ch/info/suisse/3842071-les-suisses-disent-oui-a-la-limitation-des-residences-secondaires.html

davidof - 12 March 2012 09:31 AM

One notable exception to the vote, the Valais! Over three quarters of Valaisians wanted to continue developing holiday homes in the canton.

but only 4% of Swiss live in the Valais, mostly it’s just holiday homes

Not a fantastically drafted proposition, it’s a signal of the strength of feeling that it got passed at all. A better drafted, or more practical, proposal would probably have been a landslide I think.