Basel Land Election Glitch; Pilot Program Tests Emergency Phone Access; Restaurants Fail Hygiene Tests

News For 21 February 2023

Late last week, Baselland election authorities issued a statement that the prior Sundays district election results were incorrect. Upon review of the preliminary results which were used to elect community representation in the Cantonal government, the districts of Münchenstein and Muttenz will have to cede the seats they thought they won to Reinach and Laufen.  A recount revealed that the software used to declare the provisional winners in the aftermath of the elections had not tabulated results correctly.  An embarrassed Baselland Cantonal Chancellery office, responsible for conducting elections, released an apologetic statement, and added that previous results of elections can be relied upon because these software errors had not happened before.

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When responding to calls, the challenge operators face at emergency services around the world is that callers find it difficult to accurately describe the situation, preventing critical information from reaching the emergency response operators.  Basel Stadt has undertaken a pilot program, already in use around the world, to send an internet link via SMS to callers using the 144 emergency ambulance response number.  Callers that click the link will grant permission to the emergency response operator to get video, audio and location information.  In other locations where this access was in use, vital information was available at critical moments, when responding operators decide what resources are deployed to the emergency and provide information to the caller about how to respond.  Manufacturers of the software behind the SMS link capability claim the links expire shortly after they are issued, preventing authorities from having unauthorized access to callers private phones and information.

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Last year, the Basel Stadt health department laboratories carried out 104 hygiene tests at local restaurants.  The restaurants subjected to the tests were previously identified as "at risk" or "high risk" for poor food safety in past inspections.  In 36% of the cases, the results indicated that food samples taken from the restaurants had evidence of spoilage germs or faecal indicators that exceed safety levels.  Two restaurants in particular were found to have contamination levels and food safety practices that were so poor, criminal citations were issued.  In addition to misleading customers about food quality, the restaurants which had received failing marks endanger the health of its customers.  Gastro Swiss, Switzerland's association of food service vendors maintained that the "few bad apples" damaging the industry should be cited and compelled to change their practices warned that naming the offendening restaurants is not helpful as changes in ownership and management can lead to improved service and quality.