MOST police officers in Greater Manchester do not want to be routinely armed, says the Police Federation.

The debate about whether all officers should carry a gun has been fuelled by the fatal shooting of WPC Sharon Beshenivsky during an armed robbery in Bradford.

But Sgt Paul Kelly, GMP spokesman for the federation, which represents rank and file officers, said despite the tragedy, he believed his members in Greater Manchester did not want to be issued with firearms.

Instead, Sgt Kelly says all officers throughout the country should be issued with protective vests.

WPC Beshenivsky and her colleague Teresa Milburn were unarmed when they were shot by a gang of robbers as they fled a travel agents in Bradford last Friday.

WPC Beshenivsky was shot in the chest and WPC Milburn was shot in the shoulder although the two officers were wearing protective vests at time of the shooting.

Sgt Kelly said that protective vests had saved the lives of many officers in Greater Manchester since they were introduced 10 years ago.

Sgt Kelly said: "Although the recent tragedy has made us think again about the dangers faced by police officers every day, I don't believe it has changed their view about being routinely armed.

"A national survey two years found that 80 per cent of officers did not want to carry guns - and I think the position is still the same, despite the shooting of Mrs Beshenivsky.

"Many believe that if all police officers are armed, then all criminals will be armed but I don't think that is the case.

"There is a small minority of criminals who carry firearms and an even smaller number who are prepared to use them.

"Those evil few will still use them whether we are armed or not. Although none of our officers have been shot since protective vests was introduced in GMP 10 years ago, they have saved the lives of officers from other injuries including stabbing.

"Not all police officers across the country are currently issued with them. The debate about whether officers should be routinely armed will go on for years.

"I am not anti-firearm - I used to work as an armed officer at the airport - I believe it is imperative that we have armed units within the force.

"In a challenging area like Greater Manchester, they definitely have a role to play and it is worth remembering we can call on them at any time of day or night if needed.

"But the federation's view and the view of our members is that not all officers need to be armed."

l Police officers in Greater Manchester have donated more than £8,000 to the family of murdered WPC Sharon Beshenivsky.A total of £8,132 has been donated - a £1 for every officer serving within GMP.