The row over energy prices and the green levy (6% for gas, 11% for electricity) has brought out the real David Cameron – the snake oil salesman who will say anything to sell his product (which is, of course, his and Sam’s continued tenure in No. 10.)

So what is the con this time?

telling voters that he’ll cut their bills by cutting “green charges” on energy. “We need to roll back some of the green regulations and charges,” he said.

Sounds good, doesn’t it – defying his masters in Brussels and giving the finger to his green loving coalition mates in the Lib Dem party…..and maybe scooping up a few UKIP voters at the same time.

Trouble is we all know the EU and Clegg & Co. wouldn’t let him do it. They, like Miliband are wedded and glued to high energy costs to combat the mythical monster of man made global warming. (Remember it was Labour who decommissioned coal fired power stations and introduced the green levies)

So Cameron slips into PR mode. He won’t “roll back” the green levies – he’ll pay for them out of general taxation. So essentially there won’t be any reduction of the green levy – but it will be paid for by taxpayers (i.e. “hard working families”) rather than energy users.

It’s a tax increase – but in the current moral panic nobody will notice…until the next moral panic.

Job done, PR style