Residents were forced to flee their homes on Thursday following landslips on a vulnerable stretch of cliffs.

Aberdeenshire Council said it was asking householders to leave their properties "as a matter of urgency" after landslides on the Bervie Braes in Stonehaven.

The slopes that back the town's harbour area are the focus of a multi-million pound bid for Government funding to stabilise the land.

Slides have been occurring at the spot for many years but the wet weather of recent months has heightened the risk to the 65 properties below.

A council spokeswoman said: "Landslips occurred overnight and early this morning, affecting one residential property. These were followed by further landslips near the harbour a few hours later.

"The risk level has been raised to Level 4, the highest level. As a result, residents are being advised to evacuate their homes as a matter of urgency in line with the Bervie Braes Emergency Plan.

"Council officers are contacting householders directly to recommend evacuation and provide support."

The council has been monitoring slope movements at the spot for more than 15 years and some measures to improve drainage have been taken.

Following a very wet October and the recent heavy snow, there have been calls for more to be done.

Finance Secretary John Swinney met councillors last week and it was agreed that Transport Scotland engineers would assist the local authority in assessing the conditions at Bervie Braes and how best they can be stabilised.

Mr Swinney is considering a £5.7million request for funding to pay for the soil nailing of the upper and lower slopes.

Mike Rumbles, Liberal Democrat MSP for Aberdeenshire and West Kincardineshire, accused ministers of "doing nothing" at First Minister's Question's today.

He said: "I have warned the Scottish Government for the past three years about the dangers of a landslide at the Bervie Braes in my constituency.

"Last week I told the Finance Secretary that my constituents were living in fear of this landslide.

"The council have spent a quarter of a million pounds on finding a solution to the problem and it could have been fixed.

"We have repeatedly asked the Scottish Government for help before any such landslide occurred."

Mr Rumbles added: "I ask the First Minister again directly, as I asked him before, for financial assistance to help the council deal with this dangerous situation and to take action now before it's entirely too late."

Alex Salmond said: "I've got every sympathy for residents in this position. I had these same circumstances in my own constituency in Pennan just over two years ago.

"But I'm sure that Mike Rumbles, in terms of his duties as a constituency member of Parliament, will want to acknowledge that only last week the Finance Secretary met with Aberdeenshire Council officials in order to progress this issue - an issue where it involves the expenditure of public money affecting private land and private householders.

"The Finance Secretary has already shown a substantial willingness to help and that help, I think, will be appreciated by people affected by this difficult situation."

The council asked that residents register at the St Bridget's Hall on Dunnottar Avenue.

Chief executive Colin Mackenzie said: "We are very concerned about the risk of further slippages at the Bervie Braes and clearly we can't leave anything to chance.

"It is very important that residents register at the St Bridget's Hall, even if they have arranged alternative accommodation, so that we can ensure everybody is accounted for."

Director of transportation and infrastructure Iain Gabriel said: "We have engineers on site to closely monitor any developments as they happen and are linking in with our partner agencies.

"The recommendation to evacuate has not been taken lightly, but we strongly advise residents to head to find alternative accommodation while the risk of further slippages remains high."

Grampian Police said they received a call in the early hours from a resident who had been forced to leave his home.

A spokeswoman said: "A person phoned at around 6.30am reporting a landslip. We are monitoring the situation."