Green Party membership is rising fast. The recent “Green Surge” has seen the party’s membership overtake both UKIP and the Lib Dems in recent weeks. But will this translate into votes come the next General Election? Voter turnout at the last election was just 65%. It’s part of a long-term downward trend. At the same time, politics is becoming increasingly engulfed by short-lived social media storms – such as the 2014 resignation of Labour MP Emily Thornberry or the hashtag #cameronmustgo which trended on Twitter for nearly a week and garnered some 800,000 interactions within days. Has social media democratised political self-expression or is it actually contributing to a crisis of political participation?

Steve Richards is a columnist for the Independent and presenter of the BBC's Week in Westminster. He has over 26,000 followers on Twitter and was recently ranked the 34^th most influential person on the Left by the Daily Telegraph. With a career spanning a range of media, from BBC political correspondent to radio presenter, documentary-maker and even stand-up comedian, he’s watched how the British political and media landscape has been shaped by technology over the last twenty five years.