Bumblebee FOI Request (Switzerland): Federal Chancellery and GS-DETEC

Summary

In 2025, the Bombus confusus – one of the rarest bumblebees in Europe, and an extinct species in Switzerland – filed a Freedom of Information (FOI) request in Switzerland seeking transparency on the government’s handling of the ecological crisis; however, the bee faced hurdles as a non-human animal to legal standing.

Faced with its eradication in Switzerland, the Bombus confusus, also known as the velvet bumblebee, sought answers from the Federal Chancellery of Switzerland and the General Secretariat of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) – the authorities responsible for processing the FOI requests – about the Swiss government’s biodiversity initiative. Media reports at the time suggested that the Swiss government was downplaying the ecological crisis, which the bee’s legal representative says contributed to the species taking action and speaking for itself.

Freedom of Information Request
On 23 February 2025, the bumblebee filed its FOI request together with two other natural persons acting on behalf of the wild bee, invoking both national and international law: the Freedom of Information Act, the Environmental Protection Act, the Aarhus Convention, the Biodiversity Convention, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The bumblebee, mother and child requested access to documents related to the biodiversity initiative, in particular, the draft versions of the official voting booklet on the Biodiversity Initiative issued by the Federal Council, which contained its explanatory notes to voters. The applicants contended that access to these documents was necessary to assess whether the information provided to the electorate had been complete and accurate, or whether voters had been deliberately misled.

The FOI request was made against the backdrop of a media article entitled “Active Distortion of Facts – Biodiversity Initiative: How the Farmers’ Association and Federal Councillor Albert Rösti Are Misleading Voters.” The article claimed that the Federal Councillor had failed to adequately inform voters in the official voting booklet. The article accused the Federal Councillor of removing from the final version of the voting booklet a sentence included in the draft that reflected scientific consensus: “Biodiversity in Switzerland is currently in an alarming state and continues to deteriorate.“

Access to Documents
The Federal Chancellery and the General Secretariat of DETEC refused access to the requested documents, despite a signed agreement from a previous mediation proceeding stipulating that the draft versions of the official voting booklet would be made available. Subsequently, the bumblebee together with the two other natural persons filed a mediation request with the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) in April 2025.

Mediation: non-human vs. human persons
On 6 February 2026, FDPIC issued two decisions concerning the bumblebee Bombus confusus. In its legally non-binding communication, FDPIC noted that the Federal Chancellery and the General Secretariat of DETEC had not examined whether the non-human animal qualifies as a rights-bearing entity.

As such, acting in its capacity as arbitration board for access to official documents, FDPIC referred to two recent judgments by the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland (1C_607/2024 & 2C_458/2024) and determined that wild bees do not constitute legal subjects under Swiss law and therefore cannot hold subjective rights. FDPIC concluded that Bombus confusus does not qualify as a “person” within the meaning of the Freedom of Information Act.

“Pursuant to Article 13 paragraph 1 of the FoIA, a person who participated in the prior proceedings may submit a request for mediation. The bumblebee is not a (natural or a legal) person, and there is no legal provision granting a bumblebee legal capacity. As the bumblebee is not a legal subject, it cannot exercise subjective rights and lacks legal standing as a party. Consequently, it does not meet the requirements of a “person” within the meaning of Article 6 FoIA, could not participate in the freedom of information procedure, and is not entitled to file a request for mediation.”

As a result, the FDPIC declined to conduct mediation proceedings for the non-human applicant.

While the bumblebee was denied a mediation procedure, FDPIC did enter into mediation proceedings concerning the human applicants, Homo sapiens. In its legally non-binding recommendation, the FDPIC found that access to all documents must be granted, as the two federal authorities had failed to demonstrate that the exemption provisions under Articles 7 and 8 of the Freedom of Information Act apply.

Decision of the Federal Chancellery
In its decision of 5 March 2026, the Federal Chancellery rejected the FDPIC’s legal assessment and denied access to the requested documents pursuant to Article Article 5 paragraph 3 letter b and c as well as Article 8 paragraph 1 FoIA. Notably, the decision makes no reference to the bumblebee and contains no legal assessment of its status as a “person” under Article 6 FoIA. Furthermore, the Federal Chancellery refused the legal representative’s request to inspect the files, which she had made pursuant to Article 29 paragraph 2 of the Federal Constitution and Article 26 of the Federal Act on Administrative Procedure (APA).

On 27 April 2026, the velvet bumblebee together with the minor child and their legal representative lodged an appeal against the decision with the Federal Administrative Court (FAC). The case A-3022/2026 is currently pending before FAC.

Decision of the General Secretariat of DETEC
In its decisions of 19 March 2026, GS-DETEC granted access to documents relating to the office consultation of the Biodiversity Initiative, while denying access to all other requested documents pursuant to Article 5 paragraph 3 letter b and c as well as Article 8 paragraph 1 FoIA. In neither decision did GS-DETEC address whether the bumblebee qualifies as a “person” within the meaning of Article 6 FoIA, nor did it engage with the legal representative’s statement of 13 March 2026 on this issue. It further denied the request to be heard, including the right to inspect the files, stating that any concerns and requests may be asserted in subsequent appeal proceedings.

On 11 May 2026, the velvet bumblebee together with the minor child and their legal representative lodged an appeal against the decisions with the Federal Administrative Court (FAC). The cases A-3388/2026 and A-3402/2026 are currently pending before FAC.

Ecological Context
Bombus confusus is a thermophilic species that depends on abundant summer flowering resources. It was historically widespread across Switzerland, especially in Valais and the Lake Geneva basin, and inhabited extensive lowland agricultural landscapes, including meadows, semi-natural grasslands and large pastures bordering wetlands. The species was last recorded in Grisons in 2004, with earlier sightings in Central Valais (1996) and the Geneva region (1999). After targeted searches in 2016 failed to detect the bumblebee, Bombus confusus is now considered likely extinct in Switzerland.

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