London police HQ Scotland Yard set to be sold in cost-cutting move
Cost-cutting plans will see London police move to smaller base - but take iconic sign with them
Scotland Yard has fallen victim to the economic slump and plans to sell off its famous office tower with the iconic revolving sign outside.
The well-known landmark has been seen in countless cutaway movie shots and tourist photo albums.
But London's crimefighters are now hoping to move into new digs in a smaller building around the corner to save money.
Times are tough in Britain, which is undergoing its most brutal spending cuts in a generation. And the capital's famous bobbies have not been spared.
The Yard - also known as the Met, short for Metropolitan Police Service - is trying to slash US$800 million from its budget over the next 2-1/2 years.
That has meant looking at selling the family silver, or in this case, some of the force's large property holdings - stations, operation centres and the like.
The current headquarters, which the Yard has occupied since 1967, costs nearly US$18 million a year to maintain and is in need of a US$80 million upgrade, making it an "expensive luxury," Deputy Commissioner Craig Mackey said. He acknowledged the iconic value of the site, but said policing came first.