The leader of a local government partnership has urged the Scottish Government to "wake up" to funding cuts as he warned some council services will no longer be provided at an acceptable standard.

The local government revenue settlement fell by £349 million in cash terms (-3.6%) in 2016-17, meaning a reduction of £507 million (-5.2%) in real terms once inflation is taken into account, and councils expect further cuts in 2017/18.

Leader of Glasgow City Council Frank McAveety, the head of the Scottish Local Government Partnership coalition of Glasgow, Aberdeen, South Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire councils, said they have projected budget gaps of £74 million, £44 million, £35 million and £31 million respectively.

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He told MSPs on the Local Government and Communities Committee: "There will be cases I think within the next three years where councils will have to sit down and think there might be some services they can no longer provide to the level that would be expected by any taxpayer.

"That's a real challenge and everybody in Government has to wake up to that, and if I hear again that this is going to lead to modest changes that won't really impact on services, I think they are kidding themselves on."

Questioned about authorities' use of new powers to increase council tax by up to 3% without incurring penalties from the Scottish Government, he said the maximum increase would only meet a 10th of Glasgow City Council's budget gap.

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Strathclyde University professor George Black said revamping the funding arrangements between the Scottish Government and councils in favour of greater local authority control would help cut inequality and boost economic growth.

But Michael Cook, vice-president of local government body Cosla, said the Scottish Government's decision to increase council tax bands for more expensive properties and use the money to boost educational attainment means funds are "being drawn off from local authority areas and used to support a national policy".

He said: "This drives a coach and horses through the principals of local taxation and completely trashes the democratic mandate of local authorities."

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He added: "Generally speaking when it comes to making budgetary decisions in local authority areas about what the priorities should be, people on the ground in those authorities are much better placed to make those judgments than are ministers."

SNP MSP Kenneth Gibson highlighted that the Scottish Governm