THE Green Party is putting its faith in the young after recording its best local General Election performance.

The party, which believes it has the support of many first-time voters, won the Hereford Sixth Form mock election and recently set up a county branch of Young Greens.

Daisy Blench, who received 7% of the vote for the Greens in North Herefordshire, said her party puts young people at the heart of its policies and cited free university education, a living wage, better public transport and decent, affordable housing as examples.

Meanwhile, Diana Toynbee, who gained 7.2% of the Hereford and South Herefordshire vote, said she would prefer a younger person to stand in Hereford in 2020.

She was proud of the progress made which saw a local party made up of just 10 members last year receive more than 3,400 votes in her constituency.

But the former Kingstone High School governor expressed her disappointment at how other parties had played on people's fears, especially over immigration.

However, she thought the energy of younger members would strike a chord with those who care about social justice, equality and a fairness for all members of society.

She added: "One in 14 voters here chose Green to send a strong message to parliament that more austerity, cuts and inequality are not acceptable.

"We intend to build on our success at this election and support Caroline Lucas in parliament as she fights for the common good.”

Meanwhile, Rob Hattersley, the chair of the Greens in Hereford, lamented the electoral system which did not see more than one million Green votes across the UK materialise into more parliamentary seats.

He said: "The first-past-the-post voting system is broken. With only 37% supporting the government, voters are not getting what they have voted for and tactical voting is a negative process, which confuses and disillusions many.

"We have to have a fairer, more democratic voting system so that every vote counts."