......but we couldn't resist this story.

Icon Polymer of the Midlands has just received a £79,000 order for rear mudflaps for the Warrior upgrade (tank guards in the parlance)

AND they are going to finish the job by the end of February

AND they are the only people in the UK who can do this sort of thing

AND their customer, the Defence Support Group, says "they will bend over backwards for us. We can't ask any more of them"

AND managing director Tim Pryce led a management buyout earlier this year

AND he came back from 14 years in Massachusetts in 2006 to merge three companies into Icon

AND his team turned an "extremely underperforming" group into a successful one (£20 million turnover this year)

AND they are about to stop being an SME as their workforce rises above 230

AND 10% of their sales go to China

AND they are part of the BAE Systems supply chain which has just landed an order for Viking 2 from France

AND their components are on Warthog and Challenger and CVRT and other armoured vehicles

AND they pride themselves on meeting customer requirements "in days not weeks" when required

So who says the Brits can't make things any more?

AND we can't compete with China

AND we can't grow manufacturing industry

AND the defence industry is in decline

AND we can't be innovative and responsive to customers?

Eat your hearts out you spivs, speculators and know-it-alls!