TV historian David Starkey has sparked outrage after comparing the Scottish National Party to the Nazis.

In comments made during an interview with The Sunday Times (£), the 70-year-old claimed the Saltire was like the swastika, and likened the SNP’s view of the English to Adolf Hitler’s hatred of Jewish people.

He said that those who sympathise with the SNP, especially in England, were "incapable of recognising that this is national socialism", and also noted that Scots who "bare their knees" in kilts recalled the traditional dress of Germany.

SNP MP Kirsten Oswald said David Starkey's comments were "irresponsible" and "deeply offensive to the Jewish community, the half of the Scottish electorate who voted SNP last month and 60 per cent who currently intend to vote SNP next year".

"He has become little more than a serial utterer of bile and bilge," she added.

SNP John Nicholson said David Starkey's comments on his party were offensive to 'Jews, to Christians, and obviously to Scots' (BBC)

SNP MP John Nicholson asked: "Does he just say the silliest thing that comes into his mind on any given day?"

Speaking on the Andrew Marr show on BBC One, he added: "He says the St Andrews Flag, the saltire flag, looks like a swastika.

"He seems not quite to understand the origins of he calls it the 'twisted cross' rather than the cross that St Andrew was crucified on out of respect for the original cross”

"It's offensive to Christians, to Jews and obviously Scots," he said.

Starkey, who was born in Cumbria, found himself mired in controversy in January this year after calling Al Jazeera presenter Mehdi Hasan "Ahmed" during a debate on BBC Question Time.

The historian was branded a "bigot" and a "xenophobe" on social media after the embarrassing name mix-up as he spoke about the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attacks in Paris.