Sky apologised today following Julie Etchingham’s joke on air that the Tories favoured a policy of “extermination” for immigrants.

As Dave said live “Let me outline the action that a Conservative government would take. As we have seen, some of the increase in population size results from natural change – birth rates, death rates. Here our policy should be obvious… “

Microphone switched on, Julie cracked: “Extermination.”

A Sky News spokesman said: “A comment was made in the studio during David Cameron’s speech that was broadcast in error. The comment was not intended for broadcast. The off-the-cuff remark was regrettable.” She is shortly off to work with Trevor MacDonald on the re-launched News at Ten…