MSPs will now be able to get wireless updates

The Blackberry is a handheld phone and e-mail device, favoured by corporate go-getters and celebrities.

About half of Holyrood's 129 members have been issued with the gadgets at a cost of thousands of pounds.

A parliament spokesman said the deal was struck at "good rates" and insisted the devices were secure.

Fans of the Blackberry include David Beckham, Paris Hilton and Holyrood Presiding Officer George Reid.

They also came to prominence when Alastair Campbell accidentally sent a four-letter outburst aimed at BBC journalists to BBC2's Newsnight.

The Scottish Parliament spokesman said: "We had a pilot last year and the feedback was very positive.

Commons ban

"MSPs were able to stay in touch with their offices and constituencies."

The parliament decided to roll out the offer fully in May and about half of the 129 MSPs have so far taken up the offer.

They are being issued with one of three models - the 7290, 7730, and 7100 - offering the public the chance to get an e-mail to their MSP at any time of day or night.

The "always on" aspect of the Blackberrys have prompted concerns over "Blackberry Thumb" from overuse and the speaker of the House of Commons had to ban them from the chamber after spotting MPs tapping on their keyboards.

The Blackberry has become a favourite of celebrities

The Holyrood spokesman declined to comment on the cost of the project but standard retail tariffs for the devices vary between �300 and �500 a year.

He said a commercial deal had been negotiated through the Office of Government and Commerce to get "good rates" on the devices.

It was also found that members involved in the pilot used their laptops less to keep in touch with their offices, creating a reduction in dial-up costs.

Concerns over attempts to hack into the MSPs correspondence were dismissed by Holyrood.

The spokesman said: "The devices have military strength encryption as a default and we apply our own parliamentary security practices.