SPFL chairman Ralph Topping has accused the BBC of “discriminating” against the game north of the Border as he criticised the decision to reportedly pay Gary Lineker twice as much as the whole of Scottish football.

The league chief hit back after BBC director of Sport Barbara Slater admitted there was “inequality” in the money the Scottish game gets from the public broadcaster compared to the English Premier League.

She said the £204million the BBC spent on the Match of the Day highlights was worth it because licence payers demanded it.

But Topping claims viewers north of the Border are “badly short-changed” by a deal which sees the BBC contribute less than £1million a season for Sportscene TV highlights.

And he ridiculed Slater’s explanation for the vast differences in sums paid to the respective leagues by highlighting Match of the Day host Lineker’s reported £2 million-a-year salary.

He said: “There is an overwhelming argument that the public money spent by the BBC on the UK’s national game should be more evenly split ... The English Premier League is one of the most powerful leagues in the world, and the BBC is paying £68million per annum over the next three years for its slice of that particular cake – but Scottish football will no longer be satisfied with the crumbs off the table.

“Compared to England, Scots contribute a tenth of the licence fee, yet at less than £1million for TV highlights, our BBC deal is only 1/60th of what the BBC pays to the English Premier League and that doesn’t include the money they also pay to the English Football League.

“The BBC is damaging the game in Scotland and these double standards are indefensible for a publicly-funded broadcaster.

“It’s a sad reflection of the BBC’s approach to its investment in Scottish football that Gary Lineker’s salary is double the amount the BBC pays for TV highlights of over 250 SPFL games each year.

“In the current deal, the BBC has almost halved the amount they previously spent on Scottish football. There comes a point where you have to say ‘enough is enough’ and we’ve reached it ... For far too long the BBC has been discriminating against Scottish football and it’s time for the corporation to increase its contribution to the sport in Scotland to properly reflect what our country contributes to the licence fee.”

Slater was reported as saying: “I know the comparison ... between highlights of football in Scotland and highlights that we would pay for the Premier League. The truth is, the Premier League is a global brand. It is loved by audiences and we think ... Match of the Day ... is an incredibly important programme for us to invest in.

“The message from audiences across the UK is crystal clear: they love Match of the Day and they want Match of the Day to stay on the BBC ... So, yes, there is inequality, in fairness, but, as a broadcaster ... I’ve got to invest it in the way the market dictates.”