I’m no expert in poker. But I do know this. After you’ve raised the bet, you do not lean back beaming in your chair, show your hand to the next player along, and whisper, “Of course, I’m only pretending to have good cards! Look!”

Yet that, it seems, is the strategy being pursued by David Davis. This afternoon in the Commons the Brexit Secretary made a peculiar admission. It came after the umpteenth MP had expressed concern about the dangers of leaving the EU without a deal.

“We are seeking to get a deal,” replied Mr Davis patiently. “That is by far and away the best option.”

That bit sounded sensible enough. But then came the peculiar admission.

The “maintenance of the option of no deal”, Mr Davis explained, is “for negotiating reasons”.

For negotiating reasons. In other words: it’s a bluff. A cunning, crafty little ruse. We don’t actually want it. We’re simply saying it to scare the EU’s negotiators into giving us what we want.

Mr Davis did not wink, or smirk, or tap the side of his nose. But he might as well have done.

Now, I’m not saying Mr Davis is wrong to attempt the bluff. But the thing about attempting a bluff is: you can’t go admitting that it’s a bluff. Because if you admit that the bluff is a bluff, the bluff is rather less likely to work. The success of a bluff, on the whole, depends on your opponent believing that it’s not a bluff.