The Conservative party has said it would scrap controversial home information packs (Hips) if it wins the next general election.

Speaking at the party''s annual conference in Blackpool, shadow housing minister Grant Shapps attacked the introduction of the packs, which are now mandatory for all homes with three or more bedrooms, and vowed to abolish them.

He said: "You know, this government wanted to streamline the home-buying process, making it less bureaucratic and fairer. So what did they do? They forced Hips upon us.

"The experts ridiculed them, the industry doesn''t want them; the market doesn''t need them; and I can announce to you today that the next Conservative government – will scrap them."

Since the packs were first introduced in August, they have been criticised by a number of groups, including the National Association of Estate Agents, for making the process of selling a house more complicated and discouraging people from putting their homes on the market.

However, the chief executive of Hip Payment services, Jeff Smith, reacted angrily to the Tory plan, deriding it as "both irresponsible and impractical".

"The introduction of Hips has been a great success, providing transparency and proving a key building block in the overhaul of our creaking housing market," he said.