English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Art. 1 The Government
1 The Federal Council is the highest executive authority of the Confederation. 2 It comprises seven members. 3 It is assisted by the Federal Chancellor.
Art. 2 The Federal Administration
1 The Federal Administration is subordinate to the Federal Council. It comprises the departments and the Federal Chancellery. 2 The individual departments are divided into offices, which may be organised into groups. Each has a General Secretariat. 3 The Federal Administration also includes decentralised administrative units in accordance with the terms of its organisational directives. 4 Federal legislation may assign administrative duties to entities under public or private law which are not part of the Federal Administration.
Art. 3 Principles of government and administrative activities
1 The Federal Council and Federal Administration act in accordance with the Constitution and the law. 2 They are committed to the common welfare, protect citizen’s rights and the powers of the cantons and promote cooperation between the Confederation and cantons. 3 They shall act to achieve their aims in a manner that is appropriate and economically viable.
Art. 4 Political responsibility
The Federal Council is collectively responsible for its governmental functions.
Art. 5 Review of federal tasks
The Federal Council shall regularly review the tasks of the Confederation and their implementation as well as the organisation of the Federal Administration. In doing so, it shall apply the criterion of necessity and assess whether the aims set out in the Constitution and the law have been achieved. It shall develop forward-looking solutions for action by the state.