Gleneagles Hotel's management have admitted they are running a risk by accommodating the summit, which will "inevitably" lead to disruption, and in the worst-case scenario lead to the Gleneagles name being associated inter nationally with scenes of violence like those seen in Genoa and other G8 venues in the past.

The hotel is expected to be protected by a major security operation involving police and the secret services. It has been suggested that security for the event will cost £150 million, although authorities have refused to confirm the figure.

Tayside Police has pledged to set aside a space for peaceful protest, but warned that the "full force of the law" will be used against those who try to disrupt proceedings.

Nevertheless, dozens of groups including debt campaigners, anarchists and the so-called "black block" are now preparing a wide variety of demonstrations and stunts to disrupt the conference.

The People's Golfing Association (PGA) is one of the few to have published advance plans. Members of the group, founded in Canada but operating out of Cambridge, describe themselves as academic anarchists and "self-proclaimed consultants to the revolution". They plan to hold an open golfing tournament at the "posh golf resort" during the summit to draw attention to the G8's policies.

"Making divots in the well-manicured and pesticide-fed lawns will be actively encouraged," the group's website claims.

Organisers said they were prepared to face arrest in the attempt to play golf at Gleneagles during the summit.

Anna Jones, a grassroots activist from Cambridge, said: "I imagine they will try and make it into a fortress up there. If they won't let us close they’ve clearly got something to hide. We see the summit at Gleneagles as an opportunity to focus attention on what the G8 is doing and put pressure on it."

Critics of the G8 argue that since it was founded in 1975 it has failed to tackle world poverty and has instead advanced the economic interests of already-powerful countries and multinational corporations.

Jones said: "The G8 continues to talk in positive terms about wanting to help poor countries but in reality it continues to strangle them with debt. When it does give debt relief there are often strict provisos and it will only do so if the country agrees to privatise industries or services."

Debt campaigners in particular were outraged by moves by President George Bush to write off Iraq's international debt burden at the recent G8 summit at Sea Island in the US state of Georgia.

Another PGA member, known as Sir Milk of Magnesium, said: "The US scuttled moves to forgive African countries their debts at previous summits. Now that it can benefit their favourite corporations they want other nations to cancel the Iraqi debt. There is a huge hypocrisy that is just staggering."

He said the golfing tournament would highlight the "ironic" nature of the summit's setting.

"It is symbolic of the degree of isolation of world leaders at this point in time that they have to meet in increasingly isolated surroundings. The elite nature of Gleneagles also shows how detached they are from the lives of ordinary people."

He added: "We are well aware that 'people's golf' is not going to be viewed kindly by some of the security. Nobody is seeking to get arrested but I think there is a risk of that. There will be a lot of rhetoric before the summit to try and scare people away from protesting. But many people will be protesting despite that."

Peaceful protests against the Iraq war had been ineffective despite their size, he said. "Because of the shallow nature of democracy, we need to go beyond marching up and down the street and use direct action. There will be a whole range of tactics used and this is just one of them."

Although pictures on the group's website depict golfers in black jerkins, combat trousers and balaclavas, he denied they were members of the "black block" of anarchists who were involved in much of the violence at the 2001 summit in Genoa.

"It doesn't matter what colour people's clothes are. Some class themselves as anarchists. Some will be using black block tactics and some will just be ordinary people playing golf," he said.

Dorothy Welsh, marketing director at the Gleneagles Hotel, said preventing disruption would be primarily down to Tayside Police. "We are not the security experts, we are just the hotel. But we are working very closely with the police to put detailed security plans in place.

"The police will arrest anyone who wants to protest in a violent or disruptive way."

She said there were risks involved in hosting the G8, but that on balance it would be worth it to help put Scotland and Perthshire on the world stage and boost tourism.

Welsh said she hoped the reputation of Gleneagles would not become tarnished by any confrontations between police and protesters that might occur in June next year.

"That is obviously why more retreat-type locations have been selected rather than placing the summit in towns or cities," she said. "It's always a risk, but we have a year to prepare and we believe the long-term benefits will outweigh any short-term disruption."

She was discouraging about the chances of an anarchist golf tournament even getting as far as teeing off: "The golf courses will be closed for the duration of the summit. The police have said provision will be made for peaceful protest, but any violent protesters or those who damage property are likely to be arrested."

A spokesman for the Scottish Executive said: "We will be working closely with our partners throughout Scotland and with the UK government to ensure the event is a success. The police and law enforcement agencies are well equipped to make sure the 2005 summit is a peaceful and safe one."