G20 protesters marching in London
Children are also joining the heavily-policed march
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Thousands of people are marching through London demanding action on poverty, climate change and jobs ahead of next week’s G20 summit.
The Put People First alliance of 150 charities and unions are marching from Embankment to Hyde Park for a rally.
Speakers will call on G20 leaders to pursue a new kind of global justice.
Police say protests over the coming week are creating an “unprecedented challenge”. Campaigners have rejected claims the march could turn violent.
Marchers gathered near Embankment spoke of “a carnival atmosphere”.
“The sun is shining – there are lots of banners and flags and everyone is in good spirits,” said Chris Jordan, an Action Aid campaigner.
A huge security operation is being launched before and during the G20, at which world leaders will discuss the global financial crisis among other issues.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said he is optimistic that a consensus can be reached on how to tackle the problem but other leaders are less convinced.
In an interview with Saturday’s Financial Times, German Chancellor Angela Merkel dampened expectations of a significant breakthrough.
She said one meeting would not be enough to solve the economic crisis and finish building a new structure for global markets.
Ahead of the summit, there are fears that banks and other financial institutions could be the focus for violent protests.
Organisers of Saturday’s Put People First march say police have no evidence anyone intends to take part in violence or disrupt the march, which has been organised in full co-operation with the authorities.
Commander Simon O’Brien, one of the senior command team in charge of policing security, said: “It’s fair to say that this is one of the largest, one of the most challenging and one of the most complicated operations we have delivered.
“G20 is attracting a significant amount of interest from protest groups. There is an almost unprecedented level of activity going on.
“The unprecedented nature is about the complexity and scale of the operations over a number of days.”
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber, who is due to address the rally, said there was no room for violence at the march.
“If there are other groups who want to cause trouble, I don’t want to see them anywhere near our event,” he told the Today programme.
He said he wanted to see G20 leaders agree a plan of action to deal with the financial downturn.
“Where I hope we will see a consensus emerge is in the recognition that unless they act together, then the problems are only going to get worse.
“This, unlike any other recession, is a recession right across the world.”
The Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband, who has met some of the groups taking part, said he expected “the vast majority” to stage a peaceful protest.
He said he agreed it was important for the G20 to make commitments on helping the environment as well as the economy.
“There are some people who will say you can either tackle the economic crisis or the climate crisis.
“But the truth is that both come together with this idea of a Green New Deal, of investing in the jobs of the future, which are going to be in the green industries of the future.”
‘Better world’
Actor Tony Robinson suggested the talk of violence was distracting from protesters’ demands for greater government commitment on the environment and local communities.
Jake Corn, from Cambridge, said he was joining the march to show his support for a more sustainable future.
“We feel this is an important moment with the G20 coming here. We want to get our message across to as many people as possible,” he said.
Italian trade unionist Nicoli Nicolosi, who had travelled from Rome, said: “We are here to try and make a better world and protest against the G20.”
Saturday’s march will be followed by a series of protests on Wednesday and Thursday by a variety of coalitions and groups campaigning on a range of subjects, from poverty, inequality and jobs to war, climate change and capitalism.
In the run-up to the summit, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been visiting a number of countries seeking support.
On Friday, during a visit to Chile, he said people should not be “cynical” about what could be achieved at next week’s summit, saying he was optimistic about the likely outcome.
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