Use of Tasers by police officers in England and Wales has increased by a third to 10,380 deployments in the past 12 months, Home Office Data shows
* Figure is up from from 8,161 deployments in the previous year
* Home Office data suggests the stun guns are used 28 times per day
* Follows growing fears the devices are being misused by officers
* Yesterday, PC Stuart Wright was only told to apologise after he shot blind Colin Farmer with a Taser thinking his stick was a sword
* In December, three teenagers with learning difficulties were Tasered
The use of Tasers by police officers has surged by nearly a third to more than 10,000 deployments last year, new data shows.
Use of the stun gun in England and Wales increased from 8,161 fires in 2012, to 10,380 in 2013 - Home Office figures reveal.
The figure, a 27 per cent increase, is the same as 199 uses a week, or 28 times per day.
The most common use of a Taser in each of the last two years was so-called 'red dot' use, accounting for 51 per cent of fires.
This is when the weapon is not fired - but aimed and partially activated so a laser red dot is placed on the suspect.
The proportion of cases when the Taser was fully fired dropped between 2012 and 2013 from 21 per cent to 17 per cent.
The device was introduced into British police forces in 2004 to give officers an option between firearms and other weapons such as batons. Today, critics say they fear Tasers are being misused.
Sophie Khan, legal director of Police Action Centre: 'The statistics show that there is an ongoing issue with the use of Tasers by police, especially as the statistics suggest that the Taser is being used as a compliance tool which is in direct contravention of the Taser Policy and Guidance.
'Now that up-to-date figures have been released the Home Office must take steps to address the concerns that have been repeatedly raised about Taser use to ensure we have policing by consent and not policing by compliance.'
The Independent Police Complaints Commission announced in December it is to supervise an investigation into the police Tasering of three teenagers with complex learning difficulties.
Devon and Cornwall Police deployed the Taser on the boys, all aged 14 or 15, after being called to Chelfham Senior School, near Plymouth, following reports of an alleged assault on a teacher.
Devon and Cornwall Police are also being investigated by the watchdog over an incident in which a man who doused himself in petrol burst into flames when he was shot with a Taser.
Yesterday, a police officer who shot a blind man with a Taser when he mistook his white stick for a samurai sword will keep his job - and instead was told to apologise to the man.
The increase will spark fears the devices are being misused. Yesterday PC Stuart Wright was only told to apolgise when he Tasered Colin Farmer, pictured, who he thought was holding a sword
Mr Farmer, who thought he was suffering a stroke, was then handcuffed by the police constable - who was responding to reports of a man in the town centre with a sword.
National policing lead for Taser, Commander Neil Basu, said: 'When police officers use force there is no such thing as a 100 per cent risk-free option. All options carry some form of risk.
'Taser is a less lethal weapon. It poses significantly less risk than other tactical options used by the police such as a metal baton, police dog and CS spray.
'Officers are trained to use Taser to deal with violence or threats of violence and they are individually accountable in law for the amount of force they use.
'Taser has safely resolved situations where a person has been intent on serious self-harm. Officers are trained to consider the vulnerability of the person and factors such as age and stature form part of this assessment."
Police officers are selected for the role and subjected to comprehensive training before being handed a Taser and around 12 per cent carry a Taser.
Training covers handling and using the device and circumstances under which it can be lawfully used.
TASERS: CONTROVERSIAL WEAPON
Tasers were introduced to give officers an option between firearms and other weapons such as batons and CS gas.
They were introduce in England and Wales in 2004.
Police use a U.S. manufactured £500 X26 model which fires a 50,000-volt charge into the victim via two barbs attached to thin metal wires
It has a range of 21ft and causes muscles to twitch uncontrollably when a person is hit by it.
Police officers are selected for the role and subjected to comprehensive training before being handed a Taser and around 12 per cent carry a Taser.
Training covers handling and using the device and circumstances under which it can be lawfully used.
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