Police Uniforms in Europe

Read the text. Match headings A-F with paragraphs 1-5. There is ONE heading that you do not need.   

Same job, different uniform
Find out what the police wear in five European countries.

1. _____ For eight months a year, the police in Sweden wear a dark blue cap to go with their dark blue jacket and trousers. But from the end of May to the end of September, they wear their white summer caps. Both caps are easy to carry, so the officers often take them off, especially when they're driving. This makes the uniform more comfortable.

2. _____ In Italy, the police (Polizia) wear a blue jacket and grey trousers with a purple stripe, but the military police (Carabinieri) have a different uniform. Their uniform, designed by Valentino, is black with a red stripe on the trousers. The Carabinieri wear a short-sleeved shirt in summer and they don't wear a coat. They always look very smart.

3. _____.  In the UK, the police no longer wear formal jackets with silver buttons. Today, their uniform more casual and sporty. Both male and female officers wear a dark blue jacket and trousers with either a white or blue shirt and a black tie or scarf. They both wear hats with a black and white pattern, but the men's hats are different from the women's hats.

4. _____. In Portugal, both the police (polícia) and the military police (Guardia National Republicana) wear blue. The uniform of the ordinary police is quite casual, and officers wear their trousers inside their boots. They wear the red and green national flag on the left shoulder of their uniforms and the symbol of the police, a star, on their caps.

5. _____.  The dark blue jacket of the Latvian police has two letters on the collar: LV. The letters stand for the name of the country. Police officers also wear a dark blue cap with the national symbol of Latvia on it. The symbol is a picture of a sun, and it's by the artist Rihards Zarins. The design is from 1918, but the police only started using it in 1991.

1. _____ For eight months a year, the police in Sweden wear a dark blue cap to go with their dark blue jacket and trousers. But from the end of May to the end of September, they wear their white summer caps. Both caps are easy to carry, so the officers often take them off, especially when they're driving. This makes the uniform more comfortable.

• Changing hats with the seasons

• Designer uniform

• A casual look

• Wearing a country's colours

• Spell it out

2. _____ In Italy, the police (Polizia) wear a blue jacket and grey trousers with a purple stripe, but the military police (Carabinieri) have a different uniform. Their uniform, designed by Valentino, is black with a red stripe on the trousers. The Carabinieri wear a short-sleeved shirt in summer and they don't wear a coat. They always look very smart.

• Changing hats with the seasons

• Designer uniform

• A casual look

• Wearing a country's colours

• Spell it out

3. _____. In the UK, the police no longer wear formal jackets with silver buttons. Today, their uniform more casual and sporty. Both male and female officers wear a dark blue jacket and trousers with either a white or blue shirt and a black tie or scarf. They both wear hats with a black and white pattern, but the men's hats are different from the women's hats.

• Changing hats with the seasons

• Designer uniform

• A casual look

• Wearing a country's colours

• Spell it out

4. _____. In Portugal, both the police (polícia) and the military police (Guardia National Republicana) wear blue. The uniform of the ordinary police is quite casual, and officers wear their trousers inside their boots. They wear the red and green national flag on the left shoulder of their uniforms and the symbol of the police, a star, on their caps.

• Changing hats with the seasons

• Designer uniform

• A casual look

• Wearing a country's colours

• Spell it out

5. _____. The dark blue jacket of the Latvian police has two letters on the collar: LV. The letters stand for the name of the country. Police officers also wear a dark blue cap with the national symbol of Latvia on it. The symbol is a picture of a sun, and it's by the artist Rihards Zarins. The design is from 1918, but the police only started using it in 1991.

• Changing hats with the seasons

• Designer uniform

• A casual look

• Wearing a country's colours

• Spell it out