New figures show that 629 Metropolitan Police officers identify as gay or lesbian, making up 5.1 per cent of the force.

281 - or 2.1 per cent - are bisexual, while 12,516 officers are heterosexual and represent 92.8 per cent of the workforce.

The Met boasts a total of 33,654 officers, 70 per cent of whom identify as male, according to data compiled by the Press Association.

There are four officers listed as transgender within the force.

40.1 per cent of the Metropolitan Police have opted to have their sexuality recorded.

The new force-by-force breakdown of the number of gay serving officers also offers an insight into other constabularies across London and the south east.

Kent Police recorded 2,494 officers as heterosexual which is 93.7 per cent of the workforce.

96 officers or 3.6 per cent identify as gay or lesbian and there are 64 bisexual officers, making up 2.4 per cent of the force.

Kent Police has a total of 3,930 officers and 66.9 per cent are described as male.

67.7 per cent of the force have recorded their sexuality.

As for Surrey Police, 825 or 89.6 per cent of officers are heterosexual and the force has recorded 53 gay or lesbian officers, totalling 5.8 per cent.

Surrey Police has 38 bisexual officers and five who are described as “other”.

The sexuality of 2,138 officers is unknown and 62.5 per cent of the workforce is described as male.

43.1 per cent of Surrey Police force’s sexuality has been recorded.

The City of London did not provide suitable data regarding the sexuality of its officers.

The force is 8560-strong and 76.4 per cent are male.

Across England and Wales, the West Midlands police force has the highest number of gay or lesbian officers.

263 of the force’s 7,562 officers are gay or lesbian and 79.5 per cent have recorded their sexuality.

Dorset has the least number of gay or lesbian officers.

There are 18 gay or lesbian officers which makes up 3.5 per cent of the 1,329-strong force.

However, only 39 per cent of Dorset police have recorded their sexuality.

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