❓WHAT HAPPENED: Britain’s largest police force, the Metropolitan Police, is set to spend £5.2million (~$6.8 million) on diversity roles, increasing from its current £3.2 million (~$4.2 million) expenditure.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Metropolitan Police, London Mayor Sadiq Khan, and William Yarwood of the TaxPayers’ Alliance.
📍WHEN & WHERE: London, England, as revealed through a Freedom of Information request response this month.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Taxpayers expect bobbies on the beat, not endless networks, awareness weeks and ‘life event’ managers.” – William Yarwood, TaxPayers’ Alliance.
🎯IMPACT: The spending comes as the Met faces budget cuts, station closures, and reductions in frontline services while maintaining a large diversity bureaucracy.
London’s Metropolitan Police Service, Britain’s largest police force, is set to boost spending on its Culture, Diversity and Inclusion unit from about £3.2 million (~$4.2 million) to roughly £5.2 million (~$6.8 million). The unit is expected to expand to 64 staff members, but figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request reveal that this total does not include other Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) roles across the force. The Met also runs several internal so-called support networks, such as the He For She gender-equality initiative and a Bisexual Support Group, and marks so-called awareness events, including International Pronouns Day and Pansexual and Panromantic Awareness Day.
Critics have questioned the rising DEI costs at a time when the force faces a significant budget shortfall. William Yarwood of the TaxPayers’ Alliance said, “It’s staggering that while Londoners are seeing stations shut and frontline police services cut, the Met still finds millions to bankroll a sprawling diversity bureaucracy.” He added, “Taxpayers expect bobbies on the beat, not endless networks, awareness weeks and ‘life event’ managers.”
The Met, which takes about a quarter of England and Wales’ total police budget, is currently facing a £260 million ($339 million) deficit and has announced plans to cut 1,700 officers and staff. Earlier this year, it received £32 million ($42 million) in additional funding from City Hall and the Home Office, roughly equivalent to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. London Mayor Sadiq Khan, of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s governing Labour Party, blamed what he called “chronic underfunding” by the previous Conservative government.
The expansion of diversity spending in policing reflects a broader trend across the British public sector. Government figures have shown that DEI-related jobs cost British taxpayers at least £500 million ($652 million) annually.
Recent reports have also raised concerns that some police forces prioritize diversity targets over recruitment fairness. One investigation claimed that “two-tier” systems in certain forces had disadvantaged white applicants in the name of diversity. In other sectors, critics argue that DEI programs have promoted “anti-whiteness” within healthcare and higher education.
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