Brexit leader and UKIP MEP Nigel Farage has slammed the European Union (EU) over its silence on violence in Catalonia carried out by military and police sent by Brussels-backed Madrid.

Addressing the EU Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday, Mr. Farage said ordinary Europeans would be “stunned” by Brussels’ refusal to act in the face of the violent suppression of Catalonia’s independence referendum.

The former UKIP leader — who has for years described the EU as “antidemocratic” — told EU lawmakers: “Never, ever in my fiercest criticisms here did I think we would see the police of a member state of the union injuring 900 people in an attempt to stop them going out to vote.”

The EU are turning a blind eye to police brutality. 900 people injured and not a dicky bird from @JunckerEU. pic.twitter.com/o1XV6HRrny — Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) October 3, 2017

“Whether or not it was legal nationally for people in Catalonia to have a vote, surely people are allowed to express an opinion,” Mr. Farage told the chamber, before describing some of the scenes of violence which played out Sunday when the Spanish national police and the military Guardia Civil tried to shut down voting.

“We saw women being dragged out of polling stations by their hair, old ladies with gashes in their forehead. The most extraordinary display and what do we get from [European Commission President Jean-Claude] Juncker today? Not a dickie-bird,” he said.

Hailing Brexit as “an act of liberation”, and a “voice of national self-determination that cannot be stopped”, the veteran Eurosceptic also blasted the state of Brexit negotiations, accusing the EU of treating Britain “as if we’re some kind of hostage”.

“Unless we pay a ransom, unless we meet all of your demands, then you won’t even have an intelligent conversation with us about trade… and no guarantee when we meet your demands that you will ever come to us and have a sensible trade agreement,” he said.

Brussels: Where the rules don't apply as long as you support the Commission agenda on integration and immigration. #CatalanReferedendum pic.twitter.com/YCti0s9cEt — Jack Montgomery ن (@JackBMontgomery) October 2, 2017

Despite reports of Catalans staging peaceful sit-down protests having been beaten with batons and shot with rubber bullets, and of the beating of firemen who attempted to form a protective ring between Spanish law enforcement and the crowds, the European Commission has since issued a statement giving Madrid its full support.

On Monday, Breitbart London reported that critics have taken the EU to task for its indifference to the apparent brutality, noting its relative readiness to interfere in nations which resist the Commission’s line on mass immigration and political integration, such as Poland and Hungary.