Can Greens mature while staying true to their roots?

With four MPs and 7 per cent of the vote, the Green Party scored a record performance in July’s general election – and as the party begins its England and Wales conference in Manchester, there is much for it to look forward to.

- SEAN O'GRADY

There is no reason why they cannot make further progress in the months and years ahead, but there are also some difficult challenges as the Greens grow and mature…

How strong are the Greens now?

They are certainly no longer “fringe”. Between 1997 and this year they subsisted on one MP at Westminster, the indomitable Caroline Lucas, who also served as party leader on and off for the past couple of decades. She stepped down in Brighton Pavillion and Sian Berry, long-term Green activist and London Assembly member, easily saw off a Labour challenge to hold the constituency with 55 per cent of the vote.

She is now joined in parliament by the party’s current leaders, Adrian Ramsay (Waveney Valley, formerly a Conservative seat), Carla Denyer (Bristol Central) and Ellie Chowns (North Herefordshire, also taken from the Tories). Until recently, the party was also in a coalition government in Scotland, and it can boast two members of the House of Lords (Natalie Bennett and Jenny Jones), three London Assembly Members (Zoe Garbett, Zack Polanski, and Caroline Russell), plus over 800 seats in over 170 different councils.

What political problems do the Greens face?