City of London police have confirmed that eleven people were arrested yesterday as they moved in to remove Occupy protesters from outside the Bank of England.

Following a protest on Saturday by about 300 demonstrators, which began at St. Paul's and included a “visiting the 1%” march which attempted to tour the offices of some of the largest banking institutions, around 10 tents pitched outside the bank. The protest was part of a global day of action which included protests in New York, Moscow, Athens and Madrid.

Although City of London police have said that only eleven people were taken into custody, observers for the Occupy movement, have said that as many as 40 people were arrested.

A police spokesman said protesters had been given a deadline of 5.45pm yesterday to leave the area outside the Bank of England. A handful remained in defiance of the order.

Occupy have claimed that some police officers used “unreasonable force, including batons being drawn”, the police spokesperson said “we have a proportionate response in place.”

The latest action from Occupy during their 'Occupy May' month of activity following their eviction from the camp in St. Paul's Churchyard that lasted for four and a half months.

[Photograph from Occupy London]