All mobile phone masts will require planning permission under new Conservative policies outlined by Caroline Spelman.

Launching a new campaign that could lead to tighter rules for phone companies, the shadow local government secretary pledged to halt "cheap and poorly designed masts blighting communities across the country".

Local councillors, accountable to voters, would be given greater powers by bringing the siting of masts under the planning system.

Health concerns would be taken into account and visual intrusion would be reduced, said the Tories.

Pledging the biggest changes in planning regulations since the 1984 Telecommunications Act, Spelman said Labour had failed to honour its pledges to tackle the issue.

"Conservatives will champion the interests of local residents and address the feelings of powerlessness and frustration experienced living under the threat of badly sited masts," said Spelman.

Under the proposals there would also be a single process for deciding on all masts, including those on Network Rail or church property.

Councils would also be allowed to take health concerns into account.

And adding to the hurdles that phone companies would be required to comply with, mast operators would be required to demonstrate that any development does not harm the environment.

Spelman warned that with new "third generation" technology an estimated 100,000 more masts could be built across the country.

"Local councillors, answerable to local residents via the ballot box, should have the final say on where they go," she said.