Trenchant, now there’s a good word. Definition in Chambers English Dictionary: adj. cutting, incisive, forthright.

So who am I calling trenchant. Well, none other than Kelvin MacKenzie for THIS article today’s Sun newspaper, most of which I’ve shown.

“Liar, liar … Light McBottle’s pyre”

WHAT is it that makes Gordon Brown so deceitful?

Take his latest trick. In his last Budget Brown presented the massive and inexplicable hikes in road tax as a way of influencing voters on what kind of car, ie low emissions, they should buy in the future.

What he didn’t say, nor by the way did the other half of the McBottle brothers, is that secretively he was going to abolish the exemption for older cars from the highest rates of vehicle excise duty.

 Deceitful … Brown

 This will mean that tens of thousands of families who own larger cars bought since March 2001 will find that their tax will go up from £210 a year to £300 in 2009 and up to £455 in 2010.

These models are the Renault Espace, Vauxhall Zafira, VW Sharan, Ford Galaxy, Citroen C8 and the Volvo XC90. All emit more than 225g of carbon monoxide.

So ordinary families who suddenly find that the Government have moved the goalposts since they bought their cars have a shocking problem. Not only have they to find an extra £455 a year, their car now is virtually worthless.

A relative of mine has an XC90. Now they can’t afford to fill it up, can’t afford to tax it and, thanks to Brown, can’t afford to sell it.

This has only come to light not thanks to the McBottle brothers but due to some excellent digging by Times journalist Ben Webster.

If it was left to Brown we probably wouldn’t have found out for another year.

Don’t hold back Kelvin. This is what we need, trenchant journalists.