Charles' spin on drink-driving

Prince Charles has given a whole new meaning to the phrase 'drink-driving'.

The Prince's 38-year-old Aston Martin now runs on 100 per cent bio-ethanol made from surplus English wine. And his Jaguars, Audi and Range Rovers have all been converted to run on biodiesel made from used cooking oil, it has been revealed.

The unusual measures helped drive the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by Charles' household down by 18 per cent or 630 tonnes to 2,795 during 2007-08, Clarence House accounts show.

They also show the Prince of Wales' private income rose by 7 per cent to more than £16 million last year.

The money generated by the Duchy of Cornwall - the landed estate given to the heir to the throne - increased by just over £1 million to £16,273,000 during the last financial year.

Clarence House officials said the cut was due to a switch to 'green' electricity supplies and a further reduction in travel-related emissions.

The accounts also revealed the cost of the Prince's official travel by air and rail fell 22 per cent from £1.4 million to £1.1 million.

The journeys by plane and train are paid for by the taxpayer through grants-in-aid.

The accounts also show that Charles's personal costs, referred to as 'non-official expenditure', fell from £2.6 million to £2.2 million.

The amount of tax the heir to the throne paid to the Inland Revenue dropped by £5,000 to £3,429,000.

© Independent Television News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.