Caroline Lucas's historic election as England's first green MP was recognised tonight at the 2010 Observer Ethical Awards when she was named politician of the year.

The Green party leader triumphed over the former climate secretary Ed Miliband and the prime minister, David Cameron, who recently promised his coalition would "be the greenest government ever".

The awards, now in their fifth year, saw trophies presented to 11 winners including celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Gordon Roddick, social philanthropist and husband of Body Shop founder the late Anita Roddick.

Tonight's ceremony awarded a total of £6,000 in grants to sustainability projects, and marks the end of a six-month reader voting and judging process in which over 8,000 people voted. The 23-strong judging panel included actor Colin Firth, TV presenter Ben Fogle, Penny Newman, chief executive of the Fifteen Foundation and former CEO of Fairtrade firm Cafedirect, comedian Sue Perkins and author Ben Okri.

Gordon Roddick, who co-founded the Body Shop and the Big Issue, was awarded the lifetime achievement award by Colin Firth at the V&A in London. Perkins said of Roddick: "He's had a hand in most of the social, economic and environmental rights movements that we've all been inspired by... [and] he's just the nicest man on earth." The judges said he had helped redefine business as a force for social and environmental good.

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