SCOTLAND'S councils will share just under £10 billion next year, with unions saying local government was bearing the brunt of austerity measures and Labour claiming it ignores the impact on jobs.

Finance Secretary John Swinney said the deal for the 32 local authorities was the "best outcome that can be achieved in the current financial climate", with some of the cash conditional on agreement to continue the council-tax freeze and meet commitments on teacher employment.

He said the £9.9bn for 2013-14, which includes cash from non-domestic rates, "represents an increase in funding for councils of £35.2 million for new or extended service delivery".

The overall settlement is down £1.6bn on last year, but that is almost exclusively due to changes in how the police and fire and rescue services are funded following their reform.

But this has been queried by Cosla, the umbrella body for all councils, which said it does not give authorities more money and is no more than deals done with the Government.

Councils who do not agree to the conditions on the employment of teachers and the council-tax freeze will "not receive their full share of the package of resources", Mr Swinney said.

Unison immediately called for a scrapping of the council tax freeze, with Stephanie Herd, chairwoman of the union's Scottish local government committee, adding: "These allocations are often discussed in terms of council winners or losers. But the reality is all of our communities are losing out, across Scotland.

"We need an end to the council-tax freeze and take action to make the tax fairer. We need to enable councils to continue providing vital services rather than impose damaging cuts or punitive charges."

Labour's Sarah Boyack said the settlement would be "tough across Scotland", adding "The cabinet Secretary calls this a fair budget.

"Where is the analysis on the impact on jobs and the people who rely on services who will see their services cut or increased charges?"