Forget white lies, we're all green fibbers

One in three Londoners regularly lies about how green their lifestyles are, a survey found. The fibs range from the amount of rubbish they recycle to whether they buy organic food.

More than half of 1,580 people surveyed across Britain considered unethical living as much of a social taboo as drink-driving. Experts said the lies were evidence of "green guilt" - people feeling they needed to appear more environmentally friendly than they were.

"We want to be good but often are too busy, so we cut corners or 'forget' altogether and feel guilty," said psychologist Corinne Sweet.

Eighty per cent of those surveyed said topics of conversation at the school gates and dinner parties had been taken over by ethical oneupmanship.

However, 67 per cent of Londoners said they lived an ethical lifestyle, the highest proportion-for any region in Britain.

Paul Stokes, of insurer Norwich Union, which commissioned the survey, said: "We've all been victims of 'be good guilt', where we've wanted to behave more ethically but feel confused."

THE HOME UNTRUTHS

I always re-use shopping bags from the supermarket.
We don't fly long-haul - you can have a perfectly good holiday closer to home.
We're very careful about saving energy in the house.
Use plastic bags? Never!
We make sure we have a recycling bin.