The Catholic charity, Caritas, says one million people in Switzerland ? one in every seven residents - is affected by poverty.

In its "Social Almanac 2006", Caritas called for an improved social insurance system at the national level to provide for those who had fallen through the safety net.

The charity said the number of people excluded from the job market was much higher than the 146,000 people officially listed as unemployed in November.

http://www.nzz.ch/2005/12/29/eng/article6349624.html