Is Korean car manufacturer Kia secretly on the side of terrorists? No. Probably not. But MPs have condemned the firm for causing "deep offence" with the name of its super-mini coupe concept car.
DUP MPs Gregory Campbell and William McCrea have tabled a parliamentary motion urging Kia to rename it's 'Provo' model as it reminds people of the "terror and mayhem" caused by the Provisional IRA.
The motion reads:
That this House notes that the Korean car manufacturing firm Kia has produced a new small car which it has called the Provo; further notes that this name has caused deep offence given that the Provisional IRA were known as the Provos when they were murdering and bombing in Northern Ireland, the rest of the UK, as well as in Germany where the name is supposed to have been chosen; and calls on Kia to reconsider, and bring forward a new name which is not associated with terror and mayhem.
Kia has insisted it meant no offence and the link was entirely coincidental. Although fittingly, a spokesperson for the firm said the name comes from "provoke - as in provoking a reaction". That it has.
The car is described by Gregory Guillaume, chief designer at Kia's European styling base in Frankfurt, as "an emotional and muscular car aimed at delivering pure fun and performance for today's city-based enthusiast driver who longs for the curves of the open road".