Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney insists agents are profiting less from the game - despite pocketing almost £8million in just six months.

The League's latest report on fees paid to agents reveals they received a whopping £7.9million from transfers between July and December 2007.

That is an increase of £1.7million from the previous year but, significantly, League clubs have spent £42.1million on transfers compared to £21.7million a year previously - a staggering increase of 94%.

So while more money has been lost to agents, the amount they received as a proportion of overall transfer spending decreased.

Between July and December 2007, 19 per cent of League clubs' spending was lost to agents - 10 per cent less than during the same period a year previously.

Mawhinney said: "Whilst £7.9million is still a lot of money leaving the game, it is clear that we are beginning to make progress in terms of establishing a fairer balance in the relationship between clubs, players and agents.

"I am encouraged that a more buoyant transfer market has been coupled with a more disciplined approach to clubs' dealings with agents.

"Between July and December 2007 payments to agents, as a proportion of total transfer spending, fell to 19 per cent, compared to 29 per cent for the same period in 2006.

"This season's figure is also significantly lower than the 23 per cent recorded in 2005 and the 63 per cent recorded in 2004.

"I have never subscribed to the view that there should not be payment to agents. It would be for everybody for themselves to decide if 19% of transfers going to agents is a good thing or not.

"The truth is that we think that the regulations are starting to bite and the percentage is coming down and what we are doing is making that information available to the fans.

"This is crucial so that there can be an informed debate. Prior to three years ago nobody knew what was going on and we pioneered an openness which is to the benefit of football."

However, Preston chairman Derek Shaw said that although agents' fees may be dropping, clubs are being forced to pay more as part of the overall package when signing players.

Shaw, whose club are battling to avoid relegation from the Championship, last month signed Chris Brown from Norwich, Aberdeen defender Michael Hart and Neal Trotman from Oldham at a total cost of around £1million.

Shaw said: "I think you will find that the agents' fees are coming down but the clubs are having to pay the player more to cover those fees.

"Players have contracts with agents and what we've found at Preston is that you actually end up paying more overall."

The role of agents has come under intense scrutiny in recent years but new regulations introduced in 2006 prevent dual representation - agents acting for a club and a player in the same transfer.

North End's rivals Blackpool were the only club in the Championship who did not pay a single penny to agents during the past six months.

Eighteen other clubs in League One and Two also did not, but Shaw sees them as "a necessary evil".

He added: "At Preston we have worked with agents to the best of our ability, just like they do for themselves and their players.

"But we're fighting a losing battle if we think we can do without them and I can see them being here for the foreseeable future."

However, agent Charles Collymore hit back and sais: "It really disappoints me when I hear people saying that money paid to agents is going out of the game.

"We are part of football and are here to provide a service to clubs and players."

Fellow agent Barry Silkman was upset with the continued focus on agents, insisting they are just one of the parties who take money out of the game.

"What about players' salaries - does he (Mawhinney) think players put all their salary back into football?" he told Sky Sports News.

"What about chief executives, secretaries, chairmen, kit men, physios, trainers, coaches? All money leaves the football club - when someone gets a salary it leaves football."

Mawhinney refused to be drawn on whether the Premier League should follow the Football League's example.

He added: "I'm in my sixth year of my job and I have never ever called on the Premier League to do anything.

"They run the Premier League, we run the Football League, and we are pleased that we followed through this initiative.

"We think the fans are pleased we have put this forward because it gives them a much better understanding of what is happening. So it is simply not up to us to decide what they should do."

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