FORMER Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and Toni Comin, one of his former ministers – who are both exiled in Belgium – have been given temporary passes as MEPs at the European Parliament in Brussels.

The pair had been banned from accessing the building because of pending European Arrest Warrants issued by Spain for their part in the 2017 Catalan independence referendum.

However, that ban was lifted after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that they – and jailed former Catalan vice-president and MEP-elect Oriol Junqueras – were entitled to parliamentary immunity from the day their election results were declared.

They will be able to return from January 6 and receive their full credentials and complete their MEPs’ accreditation process.

Puigdemont said an independent court had safeguarded the rights of European citizens, theirs and those of Junqueras.

He also accused the former European Parliament President, Antonio Tajani, of yielding to pressure from Spain and Spanish parties to stop them exercising their rights with an “illegal decision”.

He said: “We had to fight against a very powerful machine also influenced by Spain and some political parties that have explicitly acted against us.”

The current European Parliament President, David Sassoli, has urged Spain to “align with” the court’s ruling.