I READ in the paper that the current trade deficit for the UK is currently at £3.9bn.

We seem to be in this country under the illusion that we are sailing along with a safe economy.

But the bubble will burst - sooner or later.

In the 1980s we were selling machinery at a staggering rate here in the UK. If we made a visit to a customer to sell one machine we would walk away with an order for two or three.

In the past few years, this has turned around and we now do not sell hardly any machines in the UK.

Most machines are now going to the Middle East and Asia. The fact is we are currently visiting at least one or two factories per week who are selling around 10 to15 machines on average.

But the most frightening thing is these companies are not going broke, they are just shipping all there tooling to China and eastern Europe because it is now so much cheaper to go there and produce.

The current climate here in the UK is grim with rising costs in rates, electricity and red tape. In a few years' time, we will not be producing anything. We will just be importing.

JOHN CALLOW,

Callow Farm,

Hillside,

Worcestershire.