Muslim women serving with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, RCMP, have been given dispensation to wear a hijab while on duty. 
 
 The change is meant encourage diversity in the ranks of the so-called Mounties, who normally don a uniform that dates all the way back to the 1800s and includes a felt Stetson hat, the government said. 
 
 The outfit, which easily distinguishes the Mounties from other types of police officer and is regarded affectionately by many Canadians as a symbol of patriotic identity along with the maple leaf on the national flag, also includes leather riding boots and red serge tunics. 
 
 While the Mounties themselves were informed of the new policy at the start of this year, it was only formally unveiled by the Ottawa government this week. 
 
 It will be seen as Canada taking a stand against islamophobia and setting itself apart from other countries that remain politically uncomfortable with Muslim members of the community making their own choices about what kind of clothing attunes with their faith in which circumstances. 
 
 In particular, France is currently in tumult over the issue after a court in Nice on Monday upheld a ban on so-called ‘burkinis’ - a full body swimsuit chosen by some Muslim women when visiting the beach - on the grounds that they offend some non-Muslims and exacerbate tensions between the different faith communities. 
 
 The Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, on Tuesday dismissed the notion of the country ever imposing a ‘burkini’ ban. “In Canada, can we speak of acceptance, openness, friendship, understanding? It is about where we are going and what we are going through every day in our diverse and rich communities,” he was cited as saying by AFP, the French news agency. 
 
 RCMP change uniform policy to allow Muslim women Mounties to wear Hijab. Read more here: https://t.co/FjwbmoECgl pic.twitter.com/fec3dh8bhG — CBC Politics (@CBCPolitics) August 24, 2016 
 
 The RCMP first relaxed its uniform requirements in 1990 when it granted Sikh officers the right to wear turbans instead of the Stetson hats. That too was a step taken to boost recruitment. There are roughly half a million Sikhs in Canada, with the largest number in and around Toronto. 
 
 There have been roughly 30 recent cases of RCMP officers asking for some relaxation in the uniform rules, mostly men asking to wear beards again in accordance with religious tradition. There have as yet been no women stepping forward to take advantage of the hijab provision. 
 
 (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Andrew Vaughan) 
 
 According to local media reports, the RCMP tested three different variations on the traditional hijab and eventually chose the one that was least likely to interfere with the women officers carrying out their duties while at the same time being comfortable. 
 
 The decision was approved by the RCMP commissioner and confirmed in a statement from a spokesman for the Public Safety Minister, Ralph Goodale. 
 
 “The commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) recently approved this addition to the uniform,” Scott Bardsley said.“This is intended to better reflect the diversity in our communities and encourage more Muslim women to consider the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as a career option.” 
 
 The RCMP is hardly the first to alter its stance with regard to head scarves for Muslim women. The metropolitan police forces of Toronto and Edmonton, both in Canada, had already given the green light for the hijab as have forces in several US states. They can also be seen worn by female police officers in London, Sweden and Norway. ||||| The hijab has become an optional part of the Police Scotland uniform as the force works to encourage Muslim women to join the service. 
 
 Previously, officers could wear the religious headscarf with approval but it is now formally part of the force uniform. 
 
 Police Scotland said it is working to make the force "representative of the communities we serve." 
 
 The formal announcement was welcomed by the Scottish Police Muslim Association (SPMA), an organisation set up in 2010 to build closer ties with Muslim communities. ||||| TORONTO (AP) — Canada's national police force recently permitted its women officers to wear the hijab. 
 
 The Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police recently approved the change in policy, allowing Muslim women to wear the garment, a veil that covers the head and chest, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale's spokesman said Wednesday. 
 
 Scott Bardsley said it is intended to better reflect the diversity of Canada and to encourage more Muslim women to consider a career with the force. 
 
 The Mounties faced a public backlash more than 25 years ago when a Sikh man took the government to court and won the right to wear his traditional turban instead of the usual Mountie headgear. Canadians have long since accepted the change. 
 
 Bardsley noted police services in the cities of Toronto and Edmonton and those across the United Kingdom, Sweden and Norway, as well as some U.S. states, have adopted similar policies. 
 
 Julie Gagnon, a spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said the organization developed a special hijab but said no officer is wearing it as no members have requested to wear the hijab on duty since the policy was officially adopted in January. She said offering female Muslim officers the choice to wear it reflects the diversity of the force's workforce. It's unclear how many Muslim officers the Mounties have. 
 
 The change in Canada is in contrast to France, where at least a dozen towns have banned body-covering burkini swimwear favored by some Muslim women, the latest skirmish in a long-running duel between some members of France's large Muslim population and the secular establishment.
– While cops in France crack down on burkinis, police forces in two other countries have decided to embrace the hijab. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have decided to allow female officers to wear a hijab while on duty in a bid to encourage diversity among the Mounties, the Independent reports. Police officers in Scotland were already allowed to wear the hijab, but only with approval from senior officers, the Telegraph reports. The headscarf has now been made an official part of the uniform. "Like many other employers, especially in the public sector, we are working towards ensuring our service is representative of the communities we serve," Scottish Chief Constable Phil Gormley said in a statement. In Canada, officials say they hope the shift in uniform policy will encourage more Muslim women to join the Mounties, the AP reports. They note that hijabs were already allowed by police in Toronto, as well as by forces in Sweden, Norway, and London, which added the hijab to the uniform in 2001.