Peat's plan is to chair a series of meetings, beginning within the next two weeks, with the intention of bringing clarity and harmony to a fractious and disparate senior set-up.

The ultimate aim is to have a new league pyramid structure in place, possibly as soon as season 2010/11, with the possibility of the Scottish season being played from March until October.

He believes Scottish football can no longer sustain three administrative organisations and believes clubs stretching their resources to stay full-time must live within their means or risk extinction.

Peat also wants referees to be able to continue beyond the current compulsory retirement age of 47 and is in favour of using technological assistance.

Peat said: "I have asked myself, do we need three governing bodies? Can we establish a structure whereby teams can find their own level and full-time clubs are looked after? Would full-time referees make a difference? Would the use of technology help them?' "

The Scottish Premier League and Scottish Football League have been receptive to Peat's invitation to debate and reform, which will involve input from all three organisations, the Scottish Government, the Highland League, and include representation from playing, coaching and refereeing fraternities. In an effort to ensure transparency, and provide a fresh perspective to change, Peat is also in favour of one respected and influential member of the media to attend.

On the day that a legal hearing began in Edinburgh to resolve the arbitration battle between the SPL and SFL over a second proposed breakaway, Peat rejected the claim his coalition committee was a pre-emptive strike against the formation of SPL 2 but admitted the prospect of further upheaval sparked the idea for a radical overhaul.

"I wanted to introduce this before SPL 2 was ratified or otherwise," said Peat. "I said to Lex Gold, executive chairman of the SPL that if I brought this out after it had been agreed, people would say I am just trying to stop SPL 2. That is not the case. I want this to be an open agenda, not what I think should happen."

Peat has called for an end to self-interest and stressed compromise is key to any mutually beneficial outcome, not least in the power struggle between the SPL and Gold, the driving force behind SPL 2.

"Scottish football suffers from an image problem because of all the negativity," said Peat. "We need to start working together; self-interest will have to go. It is the most difficult aspect in what I am trying to do because the tendency is for people to come in and think of how it affects them and not the whole of Scottish football. I would be prepared to compromise, of course I would, because we have reached the stage now where, collectively, we have to sit down and find a way that betters football.

"The plan to set up this new committee has been on my mind for a few weeks now." Gold will put Peat's proposal on the agenda at an SPL board meeting at Hampden a week today. If the board agree, it could pave the way for fundamental change in every aspect of Scottish football, from the senior professional game to grass-roots development.

Gordon Smith, the SFA chief executive, was assigned the task of delivering a workable pyramid structure in May and is expected to submit his proposal shortly. If suitable, Peat is optimistic of concrete action after decades of aborted initiatives.

"I would doubt if we can get anything introduced in time for next season but if we can find consensus then I hope we could do it a year come the summer," he said. "It would give people time to buy into it and I don't see why we can't have consensus on the best way forward for Scottish football."

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