Mr Rooney has said the local authority faces the “worst budget cut process ever” and he is “frightened” by some of the proposed options.

The proposals are part of a raft of cuts aimed at plugging a forecast budget gap of more than £17 million by 2018.

A report set to go before councillors tomorrow (Wednesday) confirms that 161 jobs are under threat and even more job losses could be on the way.

• Cutting primary school hours • Three weekly bin collections • Closing Balloch Library • Cutting free school milk • Axing the Loch Lomond Highland Games and Christmas light switch-ons • Reviewing the staging of the Scottish Pipe Band Championships • S5 and S6 pupils would travel between schools for under subscribed lessons • Closing Dalreoch Primary and Garshake Nursery The report by Corporate Services executive director Angela Wilson outlined plans tabled by the council’s corporate management team - known as management adjustments - to cut dozens of posts across several council departments as part of a bid to save £9 million in the next three years.

And plans for £9 million more of budget cuts will be revealed later this week.

Councillors will examine the proposals at a full council meeting at Town Hall tomorrow (Wednesday). Council leader Martin Rooney said: “We had a budget gap of £20 million over three years and with some financial repositioning and efficiency measures we have managed to get that down to around £17.2 million.

“We normally agree the management adjustments subject to any changes which will be made at the budget meeting in February.

“As well as the management adjustments other cuts are coming out in the budget books.” He said an extra raft of saving proposals worth more than £9 million would be coming forward.

Mr Rooney added: “At this stage no decision has been made. We’re heading into the worst budget cut process ever in terms of the scale of cuts.

“We’re having to consider things which even a few years ago would have been unthinkable. It is a challenge for elected members, staff and the community.

“It’s going to be really tough.

“There is a lot of stuff in there that frightens me. It’s not a very good situation at all to be in. It’s dreadful that we get all these options put in front of us so we can cut our budget because we don’t get enough money from the Scottish Government.” He added that the staffing changes in the management adjustments were an estimate and that not all the proposed budget cuts would take place.

Joanne Harbison, Unite West Dunbartonshire branch convener said: “Obviously we are quite concerned about this but we understand where they are coming from.” She said the council had made a commitment there would be no compulsory redundancies for groups — more than 20 people — and had a policy of redeployment.

She added: “We are trying to work with the council but any compulsory redundancies would be of great concern to us. We are challenging the councillors and the chief executive to go back to the Scottish Government and ask for more money.” A West Dunbartonshire Council spokesman said: “Every council in Scotland is facing significantly reduced funding from the government in the coming years and needs to take difficult choices to balance their budget.

“In West Dunbartonshire’s case we have proposed a number of management savings that protect frontline services and the existing council workforce as much as possible.

“While these options have an impact on job posts they are not the same as job losses as in many cases these posts are currently vacant or will come from retirement and through redeployment.

“Only last month, the council reaffirmed its commitment to avoid compulsory redundancies for its 6,000 employees.”