A SERIOUS hint of concern on the part of the UK Government over the plight of Clara Ponsati, the former Catalan education minister who is on bail in Scotland facing up to 33 years in a Spanish jail, came from an utterly unexpected source yesterday.
Andrea Leadsom, the avowedly right-wing pro-Brexit Leader of the House of Commons, indicated during a debate in Parliament that the issue of Ponsati and the other Catalan leaders who are either in jail or facing imprisonment was a matter of concern to Theresa May’s Government which has previously backed Spain on the issue.
READ MORE: Why Clara Ponsati stands a fighting chance ... but it’s too close to call
Pete Wishart, the SNP MP for Perth and North Perthshire, raised the matter of Ponsati during a debate on the business of the House.
He said: “In Scotland and across Europe, people are being arrested just for having a political idea and vision for their country – people like Clara Ponsati, a professor at St Andrews University who was arrested with a Spanish European arrest warrant.
“Her crime was believing that her country would be a better place if it governed itself, and peacefully and democratically making that her political aim.
“The UK is a country that hates state oppression, loves democracy and speaks out against injustice throughout the world, so can we have a statement on that, even if it is just to ask Spain to think about what it is doing and the reputational damage it is causing itself?”
READ MORE: Madrid has carried out a coup – and it directly affects Scotland
Leadsom replied: “The Hon Gentleman raises a really important point about Catalan independence and the extradition warrant applied for against a member of the Catalan Parliament.
“Spain is a key ally of the United Kingdom, and of course we support its right to uphold its constitution. Nevertheless, I have some sympathy with the Hon Gentleman, and we always urge every one of our allies to look carefully at the backdrop to these cases.”
Wishart told The National last night that he was “surprised” by Leadsom’s answer and he now hopes that the issue can be raised with the Prime Minister herself.
Meanwhile, The National has learned of plans by Catalans living in Scotland to mount a series of demonstrations ahead of Ponsati’s court appearances in Edinburgh next month.
The professor of economics at St Andrews University was in Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Wednesday after Spain issued a European Arrest Warrant for her on grounds of “violent rebellion and misappropriation of public funds” in working to hold the Catalan independence referendum last October.
Ponsati is to “robustly” contest her extradition at hearings on April 12 and 18, and sources within the Catalan community in Scotland, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The National they would show their support for Ponsati before the court appearances.
“We were so encouraged by the support from ordinary Scottish people in Edinburgh on Tuesday that we feel we can do more,” said one source.”
The political unrest in Catalonia – more anti-Spanish Government demonstrations are set for this weekend – has already started to impact on the region.
Organisers of sailing’s Barcelona World Race said yesterday they were suspending the 2018-19 event due to political unrest in the area.
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