Ministers have unveiled plans to give elderly people direct control over how to fund their own social care.

Health secretary Alan Johnson said on Monday that from April elderly and disabled people would be given control over how their benefit money is spent.

Currently, they rely on social workers to make the decisions for them.

Johnson said that councils would receive £520m of funding to implement the changes over the next three years.

The measures will also see younger disabled people allocated a "personal budget" for their care.

"Social care will touch the lives of increasing numbers of families over the next 20 years," Johnson said.

"We are committing over £500m to support councils in radically transforming social care.

"It will mean more opportunities for people to have personal budgets, allowing them to choose for themselves which services they want."

He added that part of the money would be coming from the NHS "because we recognise the positive impact that investing in social care can have on health".

Liberal Democrat leadership contender Nick Clegg said: "Finally the government is starting to realise that power must be put directly in the hands of patients rather than being handed out from on high.

"But this should only be the first step in a complete revolution in healthcare in which local communities hold health managers accountable through the ballot box, and every one of us is given real entitlements to high standard care wherever we live."