Populist U.K. Independence Party (UKIP) is the most discussed U.K. political party on Facebook, the social media site said Friday, less than a week ahead of the country's closely-run general election. UKIP, which is in favour of Britain leaving the European Union and implementing tighter controls on immigration, attracted over 15.6 million interactions from 3 million individuals on Facebook between January 1 and May 1, Facebook said. These include likes, comments and shares. Read MoreUK election: Why the world is watching

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In second position was the ruling Conservative Party, with 12.2 million interactions from 2.5 million people, followed by the opposition Labour Party, with 9.7 million interactions from 2 million people. Facebook said that past studies have shown that debate on the social media site ahead of an election can help increase voter turnout -- and that's something that could make a difference in next Thursday's election. The Conservative and Labour parties have been running consistently close in the opinion polls, while smaller parties such as UKIP and the Scottish National Party have gained in popularity. Many analysts expect a hung parliament where no one party has an overall majority to form a government, indicating that both of the country's main political parties need all the help they can get. According to Facebook, UKIP was also the most talked about party in 35 out of the top 40 marginal seats in the country – in other words those constituencies with a small majority. The release of the Facebook data coincided with the social media firm turning London's iconic London Eye into a visual representation of how 8.4 million people on Facebook are talking about the main political parties in the U.K.