LAST week’s Scottish budget was overshadowed by the shock resignation of Finance Minister Derek Mackay, and the debut by first time parliamentarian Kate Forbes.

The stand-in minister delivered with eloquence, given the circumstances, the budget prepared meticulously by her predecessor.

Unfortunately, that is as good as it got. Once the initial spin is over, the harsh reality kicks in.

The consensus among the serious and thoughtful analysis was highly critical about the sluggishness of the overall Scottish economy, and the failure to prepare for what is quickly becoming a car crash in public services.

But the most depressing aspect of the budget was the annual ritual of the defenestration of local government.

Shorn of appropriate funding but exposed to the anger of the electorate as cuts are forced onto services, meanwhile the public are expected to pay more council tax, for less.

The body representing Local Government, COSLA, had demanded £1 billion of additional funds.

But, with the left hand it was given £495 million, and an additional £590m of Scottish Government requirements with the right hand.

You might as well take the word local out of local government.

SNP ministers in Edinburgh seem happy to restrict your council’s capacity to make the right decisions and force councils to put up council tax in a desperate attempt to protect services.

The reality facing all councillors in Scotland, especially those of us in Glasgow, is that since the SNP came to power 13 years ago, the budget for all of our vital public services has seen massive reductions.

Yet, in the face of such calculated neglect, the city has always tried to aim high.

Our achievements in sports events, our cultural awards, our success in leading Europe in foreign direct investment were all done against the odds but I have been warning for years that the cumulative reductions in the city’s resources would begin to undermine our many achievements.

A recent citizens panel conducted by the city demonstrates the anxiety of Glasgow residents who are facing increases in charges for services, alongside council tax rises of up to 4.8 per cent but we are now at the stage of the old Scottish proverb: "You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear’".

But as our citizens seek a budget to make our city cleaner, to protect essential services and to invest in our future, we are forced to find nearly £50m worth of savings.

We cannot go on like this.

We cannot continue the structural underfunding of our city and our councils.

The SNP are never shy about reminding us that they hold all constituencies in Glasgow.

What have they got so show for it?

These are political decisions and politicians who control the purse strings must be held to account.

It is time for change and it is time for our city’s MSPs to Put Glasgow First.