Government Council
The Government Council is the supreme executive authority in the canton. It upholds the constitution and enforces the laws, ordinances, and decisions of the Cantonal Parliament. Its seven full-time members are elected by popular majority vote every four years.
Table of contents
Welcome
«Canton Zurich is such a beautiful place to be!
What makes our canton so special is the astonishing variety that exists within such a small area – with everything from the high hills of the Oberland and the picturesque vineyards of the Weinland to clean rivers and lakes and a pulsating, extremely liveable city.
Canton Zurich is the economic, social and cultural heart of Switzerland. It’s also an outstanding, internationally renowned centre of education.
An intact economy with healthy businesses is key to wellbeing and prosperity. The task of the Canton Zurich authorities lies in making sure the optimum framework is in place and assuring a high quality of life. This includes an excellent education system, stable legal structures, safety, security and good healthcare for members of the public, an advanced transport infrastructure, solid financial policy and a broad cultural offering. It’s a great joy and honour for me and my colleagues on the Government Council to work for the benefit of Canton Zurich. This booklet describes the work our departments and Chancellery do on a daily basis to keep the canton moving forward.»
Dr. Silvia Steiner, President of the Government Council of the Canton of Zurich
More about the Government Council
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For the term from May 1st, 2020, to April 30th, 2021, the Government Council elected Dr. Silvia Steiner as its president and Jacqueline Fehr as its vice president.
The order in which members are elected president depends on how long they have been in office. Newly elected members of the Government Council must usually wait until all members who have been in office longer than themselves have been president. Only then can they be elected vice president and subsequently president of the Government Council.
If several members were elected into the Government Council on the same date, the older member is given priority.
In certain justified cases, the Government Council can make an exception to this rule. If, for example, a member takes over a new department at the same time, their presidency can be postponed by one year.
| Department | Head | Proxy |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Justice and Home Affairs | Jacqueline Fehr | Natalie Rickli |
| Department of Security | Mario Fehr | Carmen Walker Späh |
| Department of Finance | Ernst Stocker | Mario Fehr |
| Department for Economic Affairs | Carmen Walker Späh | Martin Neukom |
| Department of Health | Natalie Rickli | Dr. Silvia Steiner |
| Department of Education | Dr. Silvia Steiner | Jacqueline Fehr |
| Building Department | Martin Neukom |
Ernst Stocker |
| Chancellery | Dr. Kathrin Arioli | Dr. Peter Hösli |
The report and the guidelines of the Government Council on public corporate governance answer questions concerning the outsourced performance of public tasks and the establishment, management, and supervision of the participations of the Canton of Zurich.
The Government Council defines participations as independent organisations and companies under public or private law wholly or partially owned by the canton which perform public tasks or contribute to them, e.g. the University of Zurich, Flughafen Zürich AG, Elektrizitätswerke des Kantons Zürich (cantonal electric utility company), or Abraxas Informatik AG.
The guidelines came into effect on April 1st, 2014. With its decree from the 3rd of July 2019, the Government Council changed the guidelines and made the addendum including the participations of the Canton of Zurich a separate document.
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrätin Silvia Steiner PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 66 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrätin Jacqueline Fehr PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 163 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrat Mario Fehr PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 158 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrat Ernst Stocker PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 63 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrätin Carmen Walker Späh PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 159 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrätin Natalie Rickli PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 156 KB
- Download Interessenbindungen von Regierungsrat Martin Neukom PDF | 3 Pages | Deutsch | 62 KB
The Government Council's duties
The Government Council is the supreme executive authority in the canton. Its seven full-time members are elected by popular majority vote every four years and take decisions together as a collegial body. The Government Council’s duties include:
- Drafting laws, amendments to the constitution and legislation and spending bills for approval by the cantonal parliament or
the electorate - Managing a cantonal administration with about 33,000 staff
- Determining the interim and long-term goals of government policies
- Supervising the various authorities
- Preparing the budget
- Representing the canton within Switzerland with respect to the Confederation and other cantons
- Negotiating international and intercantonal agreements
- Ruling on administrative appeals
- Recruiting top-level administrative staff
Brochure
Official 2020 photograph of the Government Council
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Dr. Silvia Steiner, President of the Government Council. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Silvia Steiner, Regierungspräsidentin.» -
Jacqueline Fehr, Vice President of the Government Council. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture « Jacqueline Fehr., Regierungsrätin.» -
Carmen Walker Späh, President of the Government Council. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Carmen Walker Späh, Regierungsrätin» -
Ernst Stocker, Government Councillor. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Ernst Stocker., Regierungsrat.»
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Mario Fehr, Government Councillor. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Mario Fehr, Regierungsrat» -
Natalie Rickli, Government Councillor. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Natalie Rickli, Regierungsrätin.» -
Martin Neukom, Government Councillor. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Martin Neukom, Regierungsrat.» -
Kathrin Arioli, Chancellor of the Canton of Zurich. Image source: Béatrice Devènes Download picture «Kathrin Arioli , Staatsschreiberin.»
