The Crossroads Care and the Princess Royal Trust for Carers have said the government has spent funding earmarked for carers on other parts of the health service.

The two charities said the government was not fulfilling its promise to spend £50 million this year on respite breaks for carers.

They said although the government said in 2008 that it planned to double the amount it spent on the breaks, less than a quarter (23%) had been spent on carers.

The charities stated one of the problems with the money was that it had not been 'ring-fenced' by the government.

This meant some trusts did not have an accurate idea of exactly how much funding they received, the charities said.

Gordon Conochie, of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers, said primary care trusts were not responding to local requirements because they were not transparent or accountable enough.

"Primary care trusts aren't telling local people what they're using the money for, they're not actually consulting with carers' organisations or carers locally," he said.

"And in our report we found a quarter of them hadn't even spoken to a local authority about actually publishing a joint plan with them."

The charities analysed information contained in the responses to Freedom of Information requests from 100 primary care trusts.

David Stout, director of the Primary Care Trust Network, said trusts were planning to respond to carers' requirements but were also facing "many, many different priorities".

"So inevitably there's a need to meet needs as best you can in your local area."