Canary Wharf says it is not a target

Internal links

Investment Column

Canary Wharf, the high-rise development in London's Docklands, said it would not be affected by the terrorist attacks on skyscrapers in New York.

The company said that it had stepped up security at its landmark complex but it had received no information, from the police and other government agencies, that it would be a target. The group boasts the tallest building in Europe among its office tower blocks.

Reporting full-year results, George Iacobescu, Canary Wharf's chief executive said: "There is no specific threat against us."

Canary Wharf's strategy, of putting large numbers of head office staff under one roof in a signature building, did not need to be revised, he said. "This was an attack on American interests, not on buildings."

Canary Wharf's building methods were at the "cutting edge" of technology, said Mr Iacobescu, a trained engineer, but he added, "There is nothing that could protect a building against a 747 or 757 [plane] hitting it. Unless that is, we all end up in underground bunkers."

Canary Wharf reported a 31 per cent increase in the net realisable value of its estate to 695p a share or £4.3bn.