European Parliament Election: Greens heading for best results in 25 years

Natalie Bennett leader of the Green Party of England and Wales appears on the 'Andrew Marr Show' last month (Getty Images/BBC)

The Green Party is on course for its best European election results for a quarter of a century, it has predicted.

Surveys suggest the party has enjoyed a late surge of support and could beat the Liberal Democrats to fourth place in the popular vote.

The Independent’s latest poll of polls on European voting intentions puts the Greens on seven per cent, just one point behind the Lib Dems.

Natalie Bennett, the party leader, said their message was “resonating” on the doorstep despite getting a fraction of the coverage received by Ukip.

She said some polls suggested the party could triple its number of Euro MPs to six.

The party won its current two seats, in London and the South East, with 8.6 per cent of the vote five years ago. Regions where it could gain a Euro MP include East Anglia and the North West.

Their high point in Euro elections came in 1989 when they came third, collecting more than 2.2 million votes.

Ms Bennett said that voters liked the message that “we have to have real change in economy, society and politics”.

She said: “I stood for Green Party leader saying I was there to help to get lots more MEPs elected and I am pleased to say at the moment we are on track to do just that.”

The party is fielding a record number of 1,865 candidates in the English council elections, with Solihull and Westminster among its top targets for gains.