In a surprise result, more than half of the voters in the Swiss canton region of Zurich have voted to scrap tax breaks for certain classes of wealthy individuals.

The canton of Zurich also held a vote on whether to end the preferential treatment of wealthy individuals who do not carry on any local remunerated activities. Zurich only has some 150 of these individuals and the vote attracted little attention last week. But 52 per cent of voters elected to discontinue these tax advantages.

On one view, this is relatively inconsequential for anyone other than the 150 individuals concerned because the cantons are free to set their own taxation rates and systems.

Zurich is, however, a large, wealthy and influential canton and local commentators believe that the vote will have repercussions outside of the canton. The French-speaking part of the country has many more individuals with such agreements – nearly 2,500 between Geneva, Vaud and Valais. Public opinion in the German speaking part of the country seems to be swinging against these tax breaks, putting pressure on the smaller French speaking part of the country.

The Federal government will now have to take seriously an initiative proposed by the canton of St Gallen to abolish these agreements throughout the country even as the canton of Vaud has voted to cap taxes for the rich at a maximum of 60 per cent. The Swiss are famed for their neutrality outside of their country but within it the battle lines are being drawn ready for a fight.

Voters, meanwhile, were also offered the choice to extend the free movement of EU citizens within Switzerland to the new members Romania and Bulgaria. In the event that vote passed off uneventfully with 60 per cent of votes in the yes camp.