Plaid Cymru Member of Parliament for Arfon, Hywel Williams joined a public rally in Bangor to express solidarity with the people of Catalonia, who have recently faced threats and repression in Spain.

Mr Williams, who is also Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Catalonia, condemned the Spanish Government for threatening to seize control of Catalan finances if the Catalan Government continues with their independence referendum.

Hywel Williams MP said: “The Catalan people are asking only for a vote on their nation's future. They are seeking a peaceful, transparent and democratic means of expressing their views and all democrats should respect the right of citizens to do so.

“The way in which the Madrid government has responded to the plans to hold a referendum falls far short of the democratic standards we have come to expect from European Union member states.

“It is twenty years since the referendums on Scottish and Welsh devolution were held in which a major constitutional decision was made by the citizens of those respective countries. Those referendums were conducted in a peaceful and democratic way, with two opposing sides campaigning for opposing outcomes.

“I’d like to thank the organisers for assembling the rally at such short notice, to all those who came to show their support and to the countless others who've expressed solidarity with the people of Catalonia.”