The Chief Constable of Scotland's biggest police force wants his officers to carry a controversial weapon in the fight against crime.

Tasers deliver an electric shock of 50,000 volts and are currently only issued to trained firearm officers.

But Strathclyde Police boss Stephen House has called for the stun guns to be more widely used in policing duties.

Campaigners, though, believe it will only cause fear and damage public confidence.

They point to a recent incident in Nottingham, now under investigation, where police shot a man on the ground more than once with a taser.

Tasers were permitted in Scotland four years ago and police claim they have been used only 12 times since then.

Figures suggest there are more than 4,000 assaults on Strathclyde officers every year - and the chief constable believes tasers could help protect his officers.

The Scottish Police Federation wants Stephen House to go even further - and make the weapons standard issue.

David Kennedy told STV News: "I don’t know the full circumstances of what happened in Nottingham so I can't comment on that specific incident but what I can say is that Strathclyde officers and Scottish officers are trained to a very high standard and I would like to think that officers will not use them inappropriately.

"The taser is safer. The baton, to hit somebody, you could kill them with the baton."

However, campaigners pointed out that the weapons do claim lives. In 2007 in Canada, a man died minutes after being struck by a taser in an airport.

Amnesty International's John Watson said: "I think it's a great shame that the chief constable of Strathclyde wants to extend the use of tasers. I think we already have a system in Scotland that works well.

"Let's be very clear, we have lots of evidence of people dying after being tasered and there's a great danger to community relations and at the moment, we have a great tradition in Scotland of the police working in conjunction with the community.”

A pilot scheme could be in operation in Strathclyde within months. The use of tasers is an operational matter for each police force.

The chief constable of Lothians and Borders has previously spoken of his scepticism towards the introduction of the device.