Aberdeen council chiefs are at loggerheads with the Scottish Government amid claims the city’s taxpayers have lost out on £1.6 million of funding.

The Scottish Government pledges to give each local authority annual funding amounting to at least 85% of the Scottish average total revenue support per head.

For the 2018/19 tax year, which starts on April 6, Holyrood has given the council £354m. Part of that is a top up of £8.7m – due to the “funding floor” pledge.

However, Aberdeen City Council and North-east MSP Liam Kerr argue that the £8.7m only adds up to 84.69% of the total revenue support per head and that the council would have got an extra £1.6m had it got the full 85%.

The Scottish Government accepts the 84.69% figure, but says that, since the pledge was introduced in 2012, the average extra has been 85.42% – meaning the council has received £3,189,000 more than the 85% floor.

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The council will receive more than £354m in 2018/19 – £3.9m more than in 2017/18.

“Since the funding floor pledge was introduced in 2012, the allocation to the council has never been precisely 85%.

“This has delivered almost £3.2m more than had the Scottish Government ensured the council received precisely 85% of the Scottish average.”

Mr Kerr said falling short of the 85% figure for 2018/19 was “not good enough”.

He added “That sum could pay for a 50% increase in the winter roads budget, a 50% rise in pothole repairs with enough money left to pay for an extra 15 classroom assistants.

“This shortfall must be urgently addressed by Scottish Finance Secretary Derek Mackay and the SNP Government.”

Mr Kerr asked First Minister Nicola Sturgeon about it at Holyrood, and Ms Sturgeon said Mr Mackay would write to him.

In the letter, Mr Mackay wrote: “I can confirm the 2018/19 settlement will provide the council with an extra £8.7m over and above their share of the total settlement the needs-based formula alone would have provided.

“By providing this extra £8.7m, this ensures all 32 local authorities will receive at least 85% of the Scottish average revenue funding per head in 2018/19.”

The council’s co-leader, councillor Douglas Lumsden, said he would meet senior representatives from the Cosla local government association today to discuss the issue.

He added: “The Scottish Government promised councils that nobody would get less than 85% of the average allocation and the Scottish Government’s own figures show that over the last three years Aberdeen has consistently been below the 85% threshold.

“This has meant that Aberdeen has been short changed by £3,452,000 over the last three years alone.”