A retired inventor believes he has come up with a plan to give the world free electricity.

Ray Laws, 83, from Valley View Road, Rochester, has devised a system of harnessing the power of the tides.

The father-of-three and a grandfather-of-three said: "As a boy, I'd spend hours on the beach at Pegwell Bay near Ramsgate just watching the tide go in and out.

"I realised there must be a way of harnessing the power of all those tonnes of water moving about."

He added: "The problem with most sustainable sources is that they aren't all that reliable.

"If the sun doesn't come out then solar panels don't work.

"If there is no wind then wind turbines are useless. And if the sea is calm and there are no waves, then wave machines don't work.

"I am not looking to make money out of this. I just believe the world needs this..."

"But every day, twice a day, the tides go in and out. This is something the world needs."

He has teamed up with Tom Shelley, who is behind the Kent Inventors Forum, and the pair are trying to get the government to take an interest in the scheme. They are hoping to get a meeting shortly.

Ray explained: "I came up with the idea about six years ago but in the past two years it has become even more important with global warming and the search for alternatives to fossil fuels."

His idea is to use a number of inflatable bags which are anchored to the seabed.

As the tide rises, the bags expand and suck in water. As the tide falls, the 40ft diameter bags empty and push their contents into a reservoir.

The power of the water is then used to turn turbines to generate electricity.

Ray, who trained as an engineer at Chatham Dockyard before working for a number of companies, said: "I am not looking to make money out of this.

"I just believe the world needs this."

One of his grandsons, Harry, has created an animation to show how the project, dubbed Seabags, should work.

Ray, a part-time lecturer, also shared his idea with colleagues at Greenwich University.

He said: "I had a rapturous response but so far nothing has happened.

"Sometimes I feel like giving up but it is important this succeeds. It is the right time."