More police officers to be armed with Taser stun guns

More police officers are to be armed with Taser stun guns under an extension of their use announced by the Home Secretary.

Currently, Tasers are used only by officers in firearms squads as a “less lethal” alternative to guns.

John Reid told the annual conference of the Police Federation of England and Wales that the weapons - which transmit a 50,000-volt shock through two “darts” on wires - should be more widely available.

“I want them to be available to other specially-trained squads - not just firearms officers - who are sent in to deal with severe violence or threats of violence,” he said.

In 2005 Hazel Blears, the Home Office minister, said the guns were “too dangerous” to be handed out to all patrolling police officers.

A trial is likely to start in September, as long as an independent review of the medical evidence on Tasers does not raise concerns. The trial would involve different “rules of engagement” for non-firearms officers, effectively widening the circumstances in which suspects can be stunned.

A Home Office spokeswoman said: “A 12-month trial would extend use of Taser to specially-trained units who are not authorised firearms officers.

“They would also extend the use of Taser by authorised firearms officers where the criteria to use firearms does not apply.

“In both cases, officers will be facing violence or threats of violence, and they would need to use force to protect the public or themselves or the subject.”

Proposals to extend use of the high-voltage weapon have been sent to a special committee by the Home Office for medical assessment. The Defence Scientific Advisory Council Sub-Committee on the Medical Evaluation of Less Lethal Weapons (Domill) are expected to report back next month, the spokeswoman said.

A Police Federation spokesman said: “We support the roll-out. We think it is a vital piece of equipment for frontline officers to have.”

More than 3,000 of the devices, which temporarily disable a suspect by delivering a 50,000-volt shock, have been distributed to special firearms officers since their introduction in 2003.

No deaths or serious injuries have been attributed to Tasers in the UK.

Firearms officers have welcomed them and have increasingly used them but Amnesty International has led opposition to their use.

Its UK director Kate Allen said: “We are worried that this may be the start of a slippery slope towards a situation like that in the US, where officers are routinely armed with Tasers and use them in a wide range of situations.”

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