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A Study with “Inconvenient” Conclusions
The story began in 2022 when the Swiss Federal Office of Energy hired the well-known consultancy, Infras, to tackle a straightforward question: From a climate perspective, is it better to keep an old gasoline or diesel car, or to switch to a new electric vehicle? This question is at the heart of many ongoing debates.
By the end of 2024, the results were clear. In over 90% of scenarios, replacing a gasoline or diesel car with a comparable electric model immediately reduces CO2 emissions. It doesn’t get much clearer than that.
The Report Suppressed by the Authorities
However, instead of releasing this study, which cost 100,000 Swiss francs of taxpayer money, the Federal Office of Energy chose to bury it. The affair only came to light recently through the Swiss investigative magazine Republik, which had to invoke transparency laws to access the document.
Officially, the Office claims today that the study was “too academic” or that it “did not clearly answer the question.” This excuse has been dismissed by several independent experts who have instead praised the study as “excellent” and its conclusions as “unequivocal.”
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The Real Reasons: Fear of Controversy
Thanks to a second information access request, Republik was able to review internal email exchanges at the Office. It turns out the real reasons were quite different. Internally, the project was considered “potentially sensitive.”
Officials feared that the recommendations could be “misinterpreted” and that the government would be accused of making “elitist recommendations.” Therefore, the decision to not publish was purely political, driven by fear of media criticism and backlash from populist right-wing factions.
What’s the Takeaway?
This incident reveals a kind of political cowardice in the face of scientific fact. The Swiss administration commissioned a study, received a clear answer that supported its own climate goals, and chose to hide the truth for fear of causing a stir. This is quite disheartening.
It primarily shows a profound distrust in its own citizens, deemed incapable of understanding a nuanced report. In the end, we are left with an administration that prefers to perpetuate ambiguity and misinformation rather than educate and inform, all for political gain. And what do you think about this self-censorship by institutions for political reasons? Does it shock you?
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