Catalonian minister who fled Spain for Belgium takes St Andrews post

A former member of Catalonia’s regional government has relocated to the UK from her self-imposed exile in Belgium.

Clara Ponsati revealed on social media that she has returned to working at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland.

The Catalan former education minister had been in Belgium since fleeing Spain along with ex-regional president Carles Puigdemont and three other former cabinet members.

The former education minister tweeted to announce that she has taken up a post at St Andrews in Scotland 

Ms Ponsati (far left) went to Belgium with Mr Puigdemont (second from the right) as they feared arrest 

Following an unsuccessful bid to declare independence from Spain in October, she and others faced a court investigation into the secessionist plot. 

She and the others are said to face arrest if they return to Spain. They were at risk of being arrested in Belgium until a judge withdrew the international arrest warrant.

 A post on Ms Ponsati’s Twitter account, translated from her native language, said:  ‘The Catalan exile arrives in United Kingdom: enjoying my freedom of movement as a European citizen, this week I’ve reinstated at the University of St Andrews.’

Police clashed with protesters after they voted for the region to secede from Spain in October last year 

It also included what appeared to be a picture of the surrounding coastline. Former SNP MSP and Scottish Parliament presiding officer Tricia Marwick tweeted: ‘Welcome @ClaraPonsati. You have many Friends in Scotland.’

An entry on the university’s website currently lists Ms Ponsati as a professor at its School of Economics and Finance.

Former SNP MSP Tricia Marwick (left) welcomed Ms Ponsati’s new role at the university after she fled Spain with regional president Carles Puigdemont (right)

A spokesman for the University of St Andrews, quoted by The Independent, said: ‘Professor Clara Ponsati was granted a sabbatical from her post as a senior academic in the School of Economics and Finance to serve as a minister in the Generalitat de Catalunya.

‘We are delighted that she has recently returned to her research work at St Andrews.’