Lausanne protesters march against public service budget cuts

Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Lausanne on Thursday evening to protest proposed budget cuts to the Vaud public service. Estimates of the crowd size varied, with police and Keystone-ATS reporting between 6,000 and 8,000 participants, while organizers claimed upwards of 15,000 people took part in the march from Montbenon to Place du Château.

The protest was led by three public service unions: SSP, FSF, and SUD. Demonstrators called for the cancellation of austerity measures planned for the 2027 cantonal budget, urging the government to use reserves and extraordinary revenues to address the projected deficit instead of cutting services. Protesters also used the event to highlight a recent victory regarding the full indexation of salaries.

The 2027 budget draft initially showed a 356 million franc deficit, involving 65 million in savings and 440 million in reserve usage. Following a recent tax initiative, the budget was amended to include an additional 100 million in planned savings and 172 million in extraordinary revenues.