Catalonia says yes to Europe. So why are our MEPs being turned away? | Alfred Bosch

By refusing access to elected Catalan MEPs, the European parliament is going against all that it stands for

" Alfred Bosch is Catalonia's minister for foreign affairs

Catalonia has always been a committed and reliable partner in the construction of the European project. Unlike the Brexit supporters, Catalonia has never given up its feeling of being European or its conviction that it is part of the European Union. We say yes to Europe.

Catalan society has shown its engagement with the common project by actively participating in the elections to the European parliament - turnout was 13 points higher than the European average. It is the only directly elected EU body, and that's why, as democrats, we must demand that all those who have won their seat are allowed take their place. MEPs must be able to represent their citizens and work to defend their vision of an inclusive, social and better Europe for the five years to come. That has not been the case for some newly elected Catalonian MEPs, such as the former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and former minister Toni Comin, who were among those denied access to the European parliament.