Scotland Yard to hire Londoners only in bid to make force more representative of 'global city'

LONDON – London's Metropolitan Police have announced a new policy of hiring only Londoners in a bid to make the police force more representative of the population it serves.

Mayor Boris Johnson said Monday the change would allow the city to "achieve our goals more quickly."

Beginning on Aug. 1, only candidates who have lived three of the past six years in greater London will be able to apply for entry-level police positions with the force that is also known as Scotland Yard.

Officials say the goal is to have a police force with the "cultural competencies" needed in a global city with a varied population. Some 5,000 police constables will be recruited in the rest of 2014 and 2015.