Doctors have urged the Scottish Government to target health inequalities as part of a £500m investment in general practice.

The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) Scotland wants the Scottish Government to have a "sharper focus" on how it spends the money.

The funding was announced by the First Minister at her party's conference in October.

RCGP Scotland chairman Dr Miles Mack said the funding was "a major opportunity to invest in general practice".

He said: "Investment in the Scottish Government's leading Govan Social and Health Integrated Partnership project has shown that there can be positive outcomes as a result of investing in these areas.

"Of course, this investment should not be at the cost of remote and rural areas, where the expense of providing care is inevitably high and needs to be seen through the much wider scope of GP work operating without the back-up of the wider primary care team.

"Instead, such new, targeted investment should be seen as part of a package of support that recognises the vital work general practice performs across Scotland to support those most in need and to realise the stated priorities of the present Scottish Government."

The call comes after Green MSP Alison Johnstone wrote to the health secretary, Shona Robison, urging her to increase investment in deprived areas.

Johnstone said: "I am very concerned about recent figures showing that GP practices in the most deprived 10% of postcodes receive just £3.79 more per patient than those in the least-deprived.

"This cannot adequately allow GPs to address unmet need and respond to complex health problems.

"What is even more concerning is that practices in the most-deprived 20% of postcodes actually receive £1.34 less per patient than those in the least-deprived 20%."

Ms Robison said: "We are determined to tackle health inequalities through primary care services. By the end of this parliament, we will have invested an extra £500m in primary and GP care.

"We are also funding the links worker pilot programme in Dundee and Glasgow, which is right on the frontline of the battle against health inequalities.

"The programme provides a dedicated individual working in GP surgeries to support people one-to-one to address issues such as poverty, debt and isolation which are making them feel unwell."