ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the democratic implications of Switzerland's bilateral relationship with the European Union, with particular emphasis on autonomy and accountability. It also focuses on the concept of accountability and argues that in Switzerland, an elective understanding of how representatives should be held accountable has never played a role of similar importance as it does in representative democracies. The principles and institutions of Swiss democracy shape the normative-cognitive framework by which the Swiss at least in their majority look at the external world, and it influences their preferences in respect to how Switzerland should relate to the external world. The chapter further explores that not only the international organisations but also international law are framed more and more as antagonistic to popular sovereignty. Switzerland plays an important role as a country that offers not only low tax rates, but a regulatory context that makes it very attractive for multinational corporations which aim to reduce their tax loads.
