Aberdeen City Council leaders pledge to work together

John Stewart and Kevin Stewart pledged to work together

The leaders of Aberdeen City Council's administration have said they are working together to sort out the authority's problems.

The SNP and Liberal Democrats are split over how to shed hundreds of workers.

The SNP is proposing a voluntary scheme while the Lib Dems have said there is no alternative to compulsory redundancies.

Trade unions said they would be keeping an eye on exactly what the coalition intends on redundancies.

It followed a mass meeting attended by more than 200 union members at the Beach Ballroom on Thursday evening.

The council leader, Lib Dem John Stewart, told BBC Scotland: "The Lib Dem and SNP groups have been meeting for positive discussions in the best interests of Aberdeen."

Council deputy leader Kevin Stewart, of the SNP, added: "We have had very amicable discussions. I am sure our discussions will continue to be fruitful."

Maintain pressure

Tommy Campbell, from the T&G Unite union, welcomed any pursuit of voluntary rather than compulsory redundancies, and said: "We are still going to keep the pressure on."

The budget for next year is expected to be set on 10 February.

There have already been threats of industrial action from unions.

The council earlier said there was "no alternative" to the cuts as it had to make budget savings of £120m over the next five years.