Retailers have been urged to ensure the safety of staff and shoppers to avoid a repeat of "disgraceful" scenes on Black Friday.

The shopping phenomenon, imported from the United States, sees stores slash prices at the start of the Christmas shopping period.

Last year a Tesco store in Dundee was forced to close because of concerns over customer safety as crowds rushed to get their hands on bargains.

Green MSP Patrick Harvie said Black Friday was "deliberately designed to whip customers up into a frenzy of aggression and in some cases violence".

Speaking at Holyrood, he called on the Scottish Government to hold retailers accountable in case of any public order or public safety issues.

Community safety minister Paul Wheelhouse said: "The importation of the concept of Black Friday from beyond our shores and the hype that goes with it is a new phenomenon and, as the member will be aware, resulted in some very irresponsible behaviour and quite disgraceful scenes last year, including scenes of physical violence towards staff and other shoppers.

"While it's not for the Scottish Government to dictate the practices of retailers in terms of how and when they choose to promote certain products, we fully expect that retailers will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure the safety of their staff and customers, and to encourage responsible behaviour.

"I'm confident that retailers are fully aware of the events of last year and that every effort will be made to ensure those are not repeated."