Plans to end the plight of tens of thousands of elderly people forced to sell their homes to pay the cost of residential care have been unveiled by the Tories.
Under the Conservatives' proposals, for a one-off payment of about £8,000, people in England would receive a guarantee that all fees for permanent residential care would be waived for the rest of their life.
The Tories said that the "home protection plan" could be run by existing insurers and would not require any public money.
Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said that it would end a "major injustice" which each year saw an estimated 45,000 elderly people in England forced to sell their homes to pay for residential care.
The announcement sets the stage for next week's annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester.
It is clearly intended to trump Gordon Brown's promise at Labour's conference to provide free personal home care for 350,000 elderly people in England and Wales from September next year.
Mr Lansley said: "It is an immense injustice that every year, 45,000 ordinary elderly people are being forced to sell their family home and lose their life savings to pay for care when they are at their most vulnerable.
"This scheme is a genuinely huge step forward for England's care system and will lift a major weight of worry from the shoulders of all older people and their families."
Under the Conservative proposals, people will be given the option of signing up to scheme when they reach the state retirement age of 65.
The Tories say that it would offer "excellent value for money". Currently anyone entering residential care must pay their fees themselves if they have assets worth over £23,000, including their home. Most people who enter residential care stay for at least two years, with annual fees averaging about £26,000.
