Cameron launches into 'don't you know who I am?' mode when his Sky stops working

For David Cameron, his call-centre moment came earlier this month when his Sky television equipment malfunctioned on the eve of a Commons debate on the Iran hostages affair.

The Tory leader was struggling to get it working after moving into his new 'green' home in West London.

He initially tried the patient approach, deploying his smooth charm on the telephonists on the Sky hotline and patiently asking for the problem to be fixed.

But 24 hours later, with the television set still stubbornly blank, Cameron – who learned how the industry works during his seven years as director of corporate affairs at Carlton Television – went into full 'don't you know who I am' mode.

He called up a special number reserved for Sky's VIP customers and uttered the killer line: "I have a crucial debate in the Commons tomorrow and I won't be able to prepare for it unless I get my service back."

Within hours, the glitch had been resolved. It probably helped that Sky is a client of PR consultancy firm Good Business, which was co-founded by the Tory leader's chief strategist, Steve Hilton.

Last year Cameron was accused of a conflict of interest after praising Sky and Nike – another client of the consultancy – for running the "best social responsibility programmes", including boosting children's sport. Hilton has since resigned from the company.

Members of Sky's VIP club are celebrities, public figures and media types recommended by the company's executives. They are offered free equipment and subscriptions.

VIP customers have access to a special dedicated phone number that avoids the need to join long call-centre queues.

Cameron is not averse to exploiting his position when it suits. In an interview with GQ magazine he plugged items produced by luxury goods company Smythson, where his wife is the creative director.

And he is believed to have received free tennis rackets from Johan Eliasch, the Tory deputy treasurer, who is chairman of sportswear company Head. Eliasch has donated £2million to the party.

Sky said it would be inappropriate to comment on Cameron's contact with them.

A Conservative spokesman said: "It is untrue that there was a talk along the lines of 'do you know who I am'.

"When he moved into his new house, David did experience technical problems and did what anyone else would do by calling customer services."