Ponsati legal team vow to fight on after she loses MEP immunity vote

Lawyers for a Fife-based politician who could face extradition to Spain have vowed to fight on after the European Parliament voted to remove her immunity.

Clara Ponsati faces a charge of sedition over her role in Catalonia’s illegal independence referendum in 2017.

MEPs voted to lift the immunity of the St Andrews academic as well as the former president of Spain’s Catalonia region, Carles Puigdemont, and former Catalan health minister, Toni Comin, in a move that could pave the way for their extradition.

Aamer Anwar, lawyer for Ms Ponsati, tweeted: “Shameful vote by @ Europarl-EN giving in to Spain to lift immunity of MEPs @ClaraPonsati @ toni-comin @KRLS Who face extradition & political persecution for exercising the democratic will of the Catalan people – The legal battle goes on”.

The Spanish government immediately welcomed the decision by the European Union’s legislature as a victory for the rule of law and against those who sought to break the north-eastern region away from the rest of Spain.

The decision is likely to extend the three-and-ahalf year legal saga on the fate of the three separatists

by months, if not years, since many avenues for appeal remain open before any possible extraditions.

St Andrews University academic Ms Ponsati could be sentenced to 15 years behind bars if convicted, with nine other Catalan officials given jail sentences of between nine and 13 years for the same offence in autumn 2019.

Academic Clara Ponsati is facing a charge of sedition.