The Conservatives have said they would introduce measures to encourage at least one million households and businesses to generate their own electricity.

A mass market for decentralised "micro-energy" would be created by encouraging everyone to invest in their own solar power and other sources of renewable electricity.

David Cameron said that his party's energy policy would make it easier for people to buy and install equipment such as solar panels and wind turbines, by offering grants and loosening planning rules.

Launching the proposals at Greenpeace offices in London on Thursday, Cameron said they would give "power to the people" as well as environmental and economic benefits.

"Once people start generating their own electricity, they will become far more conscious of the way in which they use it - they will become more responsible about energy use and their own environmental impact," he said.

"And the overall effect of these changes will be to make Britain greener - to help reduce our carbon emissions and thereby contribute to a safer country and a safer world."

On how the system would work, he said: "I want Britain to adopt micro-generation: small providers, including homes and businesses, producing energy for their own use, using a variety of methods from combined heat and power, to wind to solar photovoltaic power.

"The policy paper we're publishing today sets out how it can done.

"A new system of 'feed-in tariffs', by which people are paid for the energy they produce, will stimulate diversity and decentralisation of our power supply, as well as incentivise energy-saving."

Greenpeace executive director John Sauven praised the Tory leader for "getting" the arguments for cleaner energy.

"We've been pushing this climate change solution for many years so it's very exciting to have a major political party take our ideas and adopt them as policy," he said.

"But we really want to see this as a government priority, no matter who's in Number 10."