Cops ‘will struggle if London is hit by terrorists’ as some Met officers live as far away as the South of France
FEWER than half of Met cops live in London — with some even having homes in the South of France.
The long-distance commutes emerged yesterday as a report warned the force could struggle to call in reinforcements if there is a terror attack.
Figures revealed that out of 18,179 Met officers just 8,896 live in the capital.
Most say they have been priced out.
An unspecified number in the Met work 14 days on the trot then go home for “the two remaining weeks of the month”.
One experienced woman officer told how she has been living in Cornwall for 11 years after taking advantage of the “compressed hours”.
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She has a London flat for work, explaining: “I do not commute daily.”
Less fortunate colleagues moaned about having to sleep on floors after missing last trains.
Hertfordshire is now seen as “a bit of a police enclave”, the probe by the Policy Exchange think-tank found.
The report urged Scotland Yard to convert old police properties into homes for cops and to give them subsidies.
Deputy Commissioner Craig Mackey said budget constraints precluded it.
He stressed: “We have tried and tested plans to allow us to respond at pace and effectively.”