Ukip has been revealed as the laziest party in the whole of Europe, missing more than one in three votes in Brussels.

Nigel Farage’s MEPs turned up for just 61.1 per cent of votes, putting them at the bottom of a league table of 76 parties from across the EU.

David Cameron has urged voters to back the Tories in next week’s European elections, because his MEPs will ‘turn up and vote for Britain’.

An analysis of voting records in the European Parliament reveals Ukip MEPs turn up for fewer votes than any other party

An analysis of voting records of the last five years in the European Parliament reveals Ukip members are the worst attendees.

The study by VoteWatch Europe for The Times looked at all parties with more than three MEPs from across the 26 nations in the EU bloc.

Ukip was ranked 76th out of 76 parties, attending on average 61.1 per cent of votes over the five-year Parliament. Among the six worst MEPs out of 764, three were from Ukip.

It includes controversial figure Godfrey Bloom, who resigned as a Ukip MEP after calling a room of women at a party event ‘sluts’ last year.

Mr Bloom attended just 23.11 per cent of votes, the lowest of any politician in the EU, although in 2012 he was treated for cancer and spent time away from Brussels and Strasbourg.

By contrast, the 12 Lib Dems in Brussels turned up for 86.9 per cent of votes, putting them at 29th in the league table, Labour ranked 41st on 85 per cent and the Conservatives 60th on 80.4 per cent.

Mr Cameron yesterday insisted it was vital that British MEPs take part in votes in the European Parliament to influence new laws.

‘These elections do matter,’ the Prime Minister told LBC 97.3. ‘The European Parliament makes rules that apply to our businesses, it spends money that comes out of our taxpayers’ pockets.

‘We should send people there who are going to turn up and vote for Britain.

‘One of the things about my budget cut in Europe, that saved Britain £8bn, is actually the Ukip MEPs, including Nigel Farage, voted against it in the European Parliament.

‘So, you know, it’s like that expression, a dog is for life not just for Christmas, you’re sending men and women to the European Parliament, send those that have got a plan for sorting our Britain’s relationship and defending our interest.’

David Cameron has insisted voting in the European Parliament elections does matter

Ukip leader Mr Farage was ranked 759th after taking part in 43 per cent of votes.

He has previously defended his party’s voting record, , insisting Ukip's policy of engaging ‘sufficiently’ with the EU to provoke debate had proved successful.

‘Our objective as MEPs is not to keep voting endlessly for more EU legislation and to take power away from Westminster,’ he said in March.

‘Our view in 15 years has been that we engage sufficiently here and we use that information to get a debate going back in the United Kingdom.

‘It seems to me, given the debate we are now having on the European Union, that the Ukip policy has been pretty successful.’

However Doru Frantescu, policy director of Vote-Watch, told The Times: ‘The fact that a political group or a national party delegation is less participative than others when voting clearly diminishes its power to influence the outcome of EU legislation.’

"Many people don’t realise that a vote for UKIP is a vote for the laziest party in the European Parliament"

Richard Howitt, a Labour MEP, said: ‘Ukip has vacated its duties in the European Parliament just as it would leave Britain with an empty seat at the EU table.

'Voters need to understand quite how lazy Ukip MEPs are. They are not only among the fringe parties in Europe but are also the laziest.’

Liberal Democrat MEP Fiona Hall: ' There is no doubt about it, UKIP MEPs offer the worst possible value for money for their constituents. Time and again they fail to turn up for crucial votes that benefit British citizens, whether it's research funding for our leading universities, slashing roaming charges for holidaymakers or ending wasteful overfishing in our seas.

'As the hardest-working delegation in Brussels, Lib Dem MEPs strive day in and day out to stand up for British interests and build a stronger, fairer and greener economy.'

The Green Party has two MEPs, so was not included in the study. However, the party said its MEPs turned up to more than 90 per cent of votes.

Green MEP Keith Taylor said: 'This new research makes it clear that UKIP simply can’t be trusted to represent their constituents. Their MEPs happily claim the parliamentary salary and expenses, but they don’t even show up to four in ten of the key votes.