EU Court of Justice strips Puigdemont of parliamentary immunity

The Court of Justice of the European Union has reaffirmed the decision of the European Parliament to waive the immunity of Catalan MEP Carles Puigdemont.

On Wednesday, the EU’s judicial body rejected the appeals of three Catalan pro-independence MEPs, including Puigdemont, who were challenging the European Parliament’s decision to lift their immunity in 2021. 

“It doesn’t end here; on the contrary. Everything continues. We will file the appeal before the Court of Justice of the EU,” Puigdemont said in a message posted to his Twitter account shortly after the Luxembourg-based court issued its ruling. “We certainly worked hard to get another kind of ruling, but we were also preparing the way to follow in case the outcome was what was communicated today,” the former Catalan president added.

The decision also concerns Clara Ponsati and Toni Comin, close associates of Puidgemont. All three live in self-imposed exile and have been in the crosshairs of Spanish justice since Catalonia’s abortive secession attempt in 2017. The court’s ruling could pave the way for the MEPs to be extradited to Spain to face charges related to the short-lived bid for independence.