And after an announcement of extra cash today, those surgeries will have the option to have a nurse on the premises as well as a GP.

Speaking at a conference in Glasgow, minister for public health Shona Robison said that up to £2.65 million is to be made available to GP practices to allow them to extend opening hours with nursing support.

The new investment will be available to provide additional funding for nursing cover to enhance the extended hours services, which are being rolled out by certain practices in Scotland.

Susan Ross, NHS Tayside’s general manager for primary care services, said that extra money was made available earlier this year to allow GPs to extend opening hours, offering booked appointments in the evenings and on Saturday mornings.

She said around 30% of Tayside practices volunteered to get involved in offering these enhanced services which would start from July 1. The vast majority of other practices were still considering their options. A few refused to get involved.

Mrs Ross said individual practices would offer different mixtures of evening and Saturday openings and the amount of extended hours depended on the patient list size. An average practice of 7000 patients would be expected to offer an extra three and a half hours of GP appointments.

Leading local GP Dr Andrew Buist, chairman of the British Medical Association’s Tayside area medical committee, said it was likely the practices who would get involved in providing extended hours nurse appointments would be the same ones who opted to provide an extended GP service.

But he added a note of caution, explaining that many nurses who opted to work as practice nurses did so because they had young families and the current hours suited family life.

He said involvement in extending the opening hours to include practice nurses would depend on whether those nurses were willing to make themselves available in the evenings and on Saturday mornings.

Dr Buist said the BMA believed there were “higher priorities” for health service resources but extending opening hours was “politically driven”. Ms Robison said, “Patients have told us they need more flexibility in accessing GP appointments and we are working with GPs to deliver that. We know GPs don’t work in isolation and nurses are a critical part of the care that practices provide.

“Since April, GP practices have been able to apply for extra funding to extend their opening hours to weekday evenings, early mornings or Saturday mornings. This extra £2.65 million funding will further enhance this by investing in vital nursing support during those hours.”

Ms Robison made her announcement at the 2008 NHS Scotland Event in Glasgow’s SECC.

The minister also announced an expansion of the services provided by Scotland's community pharmacies.

She said, “Working with community pharmacists, we are introducing a smoking cessation service and a sexual health service offering free chlamydia testing and treatment and free emergency contraception.

“Both of these will make an important contribution to improving the health of Scots.”

“Today's announcements prove we are determined to deliver on that commitment and, in the 60th anniversary of the NHS, will work in partnership together with health service staff to ensure we continue to improve the health of all people in Scotland.”