EU court denies Catalan separatist Puigdemont's bid for European Parliament recognition

The EU Court of Justice has rejected an appeal by Catalan separatist leaders Carles Puigdemont and Toni Comin who both sought recognition as European Parliament members after being denied in June 2019, the court said on Thursday.

Despite being elected in the 2019 European Parliament elections, their status was eventually not recognised due to their failure to take an oath pledging to respect the Spanish constitution, a procedure normally done in person in Madrid, as is required of newly-elected MEPs ahead of taking up their seat.

The ruling upheld an earlier judgment by the EU's General Court that waived the immunity that Puigdemont and Comin would hold as MEPs.

"The General Court correctly held that the President of the European Parliament could not depart from the list of elected Members which had been officially notified to him by the Spanish authorities," the Court of Justice said in its judgement.

Jordi Turull, secretary-general of Puigdemont's and Comin's party Junts, which campaigns for independence from Spain for Catalonia, said on X: "We will continue fighting and persisting on every front to give voice and vote to what the ballot boxes said."