Barcelona is set to become the first big city in Spain to ban Islamic face veils in public buildings such as markets and libraries.

The city's municipal government released a statement on Tuesday announcing the prohibition, which is due to take effect after the summer.

"Barcelona will forbid the use of the burqa, niqab and any other item which hinders personal identification in any of the city's public installations," the statement said.

Alberto Fernandez, a city councellor and member of the conservative Popular Party, said on his website that "the use of the burqa and niqab undermines the dignity and freedom of women".

"The mayoral decree is a half-measure, because as well as forbidding the burqa and niqab in public installations, it is necessary to forbid it on the street," he added.

Face veils are banned in all public spaces in the relatively small towns of Lerida and El Vendrell, which like Barcelona are in the northeastern region of Catalonia in Spain.

But Jordi Hereu, Barcelona's mayor, has resisted calls to impose a ban on full face veils in all public spaces in Spain's second-largest city, which is home to around 1.4 million Muslims, because he said it was outside the jurisdiction of a municipal government.

The ban on face veils is not new in Europe.

France approved a bill last month to outlaw the wearing of veils in public and Belgium's lower house has also voted in favour of prohibiting the full veil, provoking strong reaction and stoking debate across the continent.

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