Hibernian FC chief executive Leeann Dempster has hit out at a councillor who launched a campaign calling for the club to pay the living wage before he had even contacted them.

Leith councillor Lewis Ritchie set up an online petition to attract support for Hibs to become an accredited Living Wage employer.

He started the campaign before he got in touch with the club, enraging Ms Dempster.

In a strongly-worded letter to Mr Ritchie, which she posted on Twitter on Friday, Ms Dempster revealed Hibernian already pay staff the living wage.

She criticised the SNP member for failing to approach her before the petition went live.

Ms Dempster said: "Everyone at the club was surprised that a local, elected official chose to 'go public' before allowing any opportunity to respond.

"You sent me an email on February 22, which arrived in my email inbox at 4.12pm.

"Your Facebook 'petition' was launched on the same day at 3.59pm, in which you said you had written to me, and in response to comments gave the impression that reasonable time had been allowed for a reply.

"Hibernian took the decision some time ago to pay the living wage. All of our contracted staff now earn the living wage and that has been the case for more than a year."

She added the club have not sought accreditation for their living wage status because it is not a priority for their staff.

The letter added: "It is fair to say that we are very surprised at the way you have chosen to go about this.

"You literally launched this campaign before your email hit our inbox. We also note that this petition focuses solely on Hibernian.

"There are a number of business in Leith and North Edinburgh, some of them larger employers than Hibernian, and it would be interesting to know how many of these you have dealt with in a similar vein?"

After Ms Dempster posted the full letter online, Mr Ritchie posted a copy of a letter of apology.

He said: "My intention had been to create some level of public interest on the issue so that my request to meet with me and representatives from the Accredited Living Wage initiative might have been met with more success.

"This approach has been criticised, with many suggesting that I should have waited for a response from the club before actively campaigning on the issue.

"As someone with nothing but respect for Hibernian and its supporters, I agree this would have been a better approach."

Mr Ritchie added he did not intend to mislead anyone in the matter and that he "apologised unreservedly" for the issue.

Concluding the letter, Mr Ritchie wrote: "I hope that Hibernian will re-examine the issue of Living Wage accreditation in the near future."