Of those in favour of the ban, 32 were from the centre-right nationalists CiU, 21 from the left-wing nationalists ERC, 12 from the greens ICV and three from the ruling Socialists PSC.

Of those who wanted the torture to continue, 31 were from the PSC, 14 from the right-wing PP, seven from the CiU and three from Ciutadans.

It was disappointing to see the Generalitat president, José Montilla, opposed to the ban. Though the Socialists were allowed a free vote, his 'no' vote must surely diminish his authority given that a succession of polls showed a majority of Catalans in favour of a ban. The CiU’s charismatic leader, Albert Mas, voted to end the torture. As a result his stock will surely rise.

In Catalunya, the CiU is the largest party with 48 seats but the PSC rules in a coalition with ERC and ICV – very much like Cymru where the Welsh Assembly is run by minority Labour in a pact with the nationalists Plaid Cymru.

Huge international petition

It’s clear that many PSC parliamentarians were driven to vote against the ban on the grounds that it will play into the hands of nationalists by suggesting that Catalunya is not really part of Spain. Some CiU members, on the other hand, backed the ban for precisely that reason.

But it would be wrong to see the ban in purely political terms. The central issue is opposing cruelty to animals (before the “brave” matador moves in for the kill, the exhausted bulls are much weakened by torture) and those who enjoy such cruelty.

The issue has attracted considerable international attention. Last week, the World Society for the Protection of Animals handed in a petition with 140,000 signatures from 120 countries backing the ban. The campaign was led by the animal rights lobby group, Prou! (Enough!). Minutes after the result, Montilla was assuring reporters from around the world that the ban did not represent a rupture with the rest of Spain.

The PP has indicated it will not accept the will of the Catalan people as expressed through their Generalitat and will attempt to get the ban overturned in Congress in Madrid. The central Government, though, has said it will live with the vote and has no plans to legislate against bull-fighting. The bull-fighting sector is also threatening to take the matter to Spain's Consitutional Court and the owners of Catalunya’s last bull-ring, Monumental in Barcelona, say they will demand substantial compensation.

Opponents of the bull-fighting ban wielded some very wierd arguments in favour of their case, most around the notion that bull-fighting is an art which should be retained for cultural reasons. Get real! How on earth can cruelty be considered an “art” or as a “cultural asset”? On that basis, should Britain bring back bear-baiting.

'Sport' is waning in Spain

There's even a bizarre move to get Unesco to place bull-fighting on its Intangible Cultural Hertage List

They also point to the long history of bull-fighting in Catalunya. This is true, the Monumental bull-ring is one of the oldest in Spain. But that's not the full story. During the last 40 years, support among Catalans has waned considerably, aided in no small part by dictator Franco’s ham-fisted attempt to ram bull-fighting down their throats as part of his drive to obliterate Catalan culture. Barcelona’s other bull-ring at Espanya closed years ago and is now being converted into shops, restaurants and apartments. It looks stunning.

Nowadays, bull-fights at the Monumental are mostly seen by tourists and some immigrants from other parts of Spain, rows upon rows of empty seats testifying to the decline. Already there is a proposal to build a mosque on the site.

The so-called “sport” is on the wane in the rest of Spain, too, with attendances down everywhere. Last year, 3,192 fewer animals were killed in bull-fights and fiestas than in 2008. But that still left 10,247 bulls having to suffer before being dispatched in 2,684 “celebrations”.

◙ Catalunya is not the first Spanish region to ban bull-fighting. The Canary Islands have had a ban in place since 1991.