A chief constable has broken ranks with frontline officers and come out against the use of tasers or stun guns in Scotland.

Delegates at the Scottish Police Federation’s annual conference in April voted overwhelming for more widespread use of tasers, mirroring moves in England and Wales to give the guns to 10,000 officers.

However, David Strang, the Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police, said that the suitability of tasers in Scotland had still to be proved, arguing that CS spray and body armour were adequate enough defences for officers on the beat.

Mr Strang, 51, said: “I think the taser question is an interesting one and I know it was discussed at the annual conference in Peebles but I don’t think that is a universal view of cops.

“[Using tasers] is quite a specialist skill and I think we would need to be convinced that there was more of a need for it on the front line. I feel that we operate in a much less hostile environment compared to some inner-city areas down south and I feel that the protection we offer officers — through training, the protective equipment and the CS spray — is adequate.”

About 700 police officers in Scotland are trained to use tasers, but the weapons have been discharged only 12 times since their introduction in 2004, on 11 occasions by Strathclyde Police and once by Lothian and Borders Police.

The £8 million plan to expand the use of tasers in England and Wales, which was announced by Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, in November, has been opposed by some forces, including the Metropolitan Police.

They argue that the widespread use of tasers will alarm the public and increase tension on the streets while Amnesty International claims that the guns are potentially lethal and have been linked to hundreds of deaths in the US and Canada.

Mr Strang said that it was important to assess the success of tasers in England and Wales before Scottish forces increased their use of the guns.

However, he said claims that tasers could escalate violence were wrong. When CS spray was introduced, he said, there were some people who thought that criminals would respond more violently. “We find that that is not the case at all and CS spray is very effective and quite often when the officers pull it out the offender put their hands up and give up.”

He said that tasers were preferable to firearms. “Clearly it is preferable to use the taser than to shoot someone with a bullet.”

Mr Strang, who was born in Glasgow, has been Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police since December 2006. He joined the Metropolitan police in 1980 after studying engineering at Durham University and was previously the chief constable of Dumfries and Galloway.

He praised the “summary justice” legal reforms introduced last year. The changes had speeded up the justice system, he said, by giving procurator fiscals the power to issue fines, warnings and work orders for minor offences such as vandalism and minor assault rather than bring offenders to court.

It had also put victims’ minds at rest and saved them from the potentially long and worrying court process.

“In the past it has taken too long to get to court and eventually in 18 months, people can’t even remember what the incident was about,” he said. “Summary justice reform has worked well and produced efficiencies, reducing the number of officers at court giving evidence and speeded up the process. Clearly, from an efficiency point of view it makes a lot of sense.”

Critics insist that the reforms have made Scotland a “soft touch” for petty criminals. Bill Aitken MSP, the Conservative justice spokesman, said that they were “no deterrent at all”.

“The jury is firmly out as to how effective these measures are in the wider sense,” he said. “While offenders are being asked to pay £40 as opposed to the normal court fine — around £100 — the penalties are not in many instances paid. The result is that those subject to these direct measures have even less respect for the justice system and will carry on offending and eventually do something serious.”

Mr Strang said that his top priority remained protecting Edinburgh from a terrorist attack. The city was a potential target because it was home to the Scottish Parliament, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and several important financial institutions and hosted several popular festivals.

“The challenge for us is that you never know what is going to happen and one of the big threats for us is always the possibility of a terrorist attack. At the forefront of our planning is always the protection of the public,” he said.

Earlier this month Lord West of Spithead, the Security Minister, gave warning that Edinburgh could become a target for terrorists.

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