Square Mile workers shun police advice to 'don a disguise'

CITY bankers today defied threats of an attack by G20 protesters as they refused to don a "dress down" disguise.

Finance workers insisted they would defend themselves against anarchist groups, who have threatened to target the City tomorrow - dubbed "Financial Fools Day".

Workers in the Square Mile have been advised by police to dress down and not carry corporate branded bags after protesters circulated a map of targets that includes banks and law firms. But today they refused to follow the advice, insisting they would "take action" to protect themselves if necessary.

Graham Williams, the director of an insurance company, said: "We're not all pansies. I grew up in a council housing project. Most of us have played rugby or boxed. When we've had problems before, some of those guys got as good as they gave. And they won't forget that."

Company director Alan Cornelius, 81, said he would not be changing his lifetime habit of wearing a suit, adding: "All I've got otherwise is my gardening clothes."

Others dismissed the threat, with Jonathan Van Der Molen, managing director of asset recovery business Your Development, saying: "It will just turn into the usual anarchic nonsense that we tend to see from people who have got nothing better to do."

Anarchists have published a detailed "Squaring up to the Square Mile" map of City targets that identifies the top accountants, financial associations and credit rating agencies, while highlighting places for protesters to avoid - such as police stations.

Those singled out on the map include the London Stock Exchange, Bank of England and banks including JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs and the Royal Bank of Scotland.

City law firms in the alleged firing line include Linklaters, Clifford Chance, Freshfields and Bruckhaus Deringer.

The head offices of energy and other companies featuring on the protesters' hit list include BP, BT, Tate & Lyle and Sainsbury's.

Potential demonstrators are urged to vent their fury at the "carpeted, warmed and well-lighted offices" of corporate capitalism.

The campaigners warn: "A system that wreaks destruction everywhere must be resisted everywhere.

"The Square Mile is the place to start."

While details on the map are in the public domain, its publication on the internet will make it easier for protesters to co-ordinate actions and identify targets.

A spokesman for bankers Merrill Lynch said: "We are working with all the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of our staff.

"And we are letting them know what may be occurring so they can look out for themselves.

"We have security on all the time and they will be extra vigilant this week."