Warnings over Taser officers' use of cameras

There are calls for police officers who use Tasers to be equipped with cameras or body worn video (BWV) as they're known.

Despite some top officers describing the technology as 'effective' and 'vital' to 21st century policing, a new survey has found a 'complete lack of consistency' among police forces in the deployment of the cameras.

Earlier this year, Devon and Cornwall police announced plans to double the number of officers carrying tasers but say they need to solve a 'data storage problem' before considering a roll out of the cameras.

In 2013, 32-year-old Andrew Pimlott from Plymouth died after police fired a Taser at him, while he was covered in petrol holding a lit match.

An inquest found the Taser was the most likely cause of the fuel igniting.

Back in July, Avon & Somerset police announced that every frontline officer in the force area would wear a body camera.

2,300 officers will be using the cameras by the end of the year.

The College of Policing said there was "no specific guidance" for issuing armed officers with bodycams, although it did issue advice on BWV use in 2014.

Both the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) have said the use of BWVs is an "operational" decision for each force.

But the chairman of the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, Keith Vaz, said the "complete lack of consistency" across forces should "raise alarm bells."

National Police Chiefs' Council deputy assistant commissioner Neil Basu said the use of Taser and BWV is agreed with chief officers at a national level in England and Wales.