The BBC will launch a new TV channel in Scotland, the corporation's director general has announced.

Lord Hall revealed the news to staff at BBC Scotland's headquarters in Glasgow on Wednesday.

The new channel will have a budget of £30m, the same as BBC Four, and will launch in autumn 2018.

Lord Hall also announced an additional £20m for BBC Scotland to produce UK-wide programmes.

An hour-long news programme delivering Scottish, UK and international news will be broadcast on weekdays at 9pm.

Lord Hall said: "I said at the beginning of the year that the BBC needed to be more creative and distinctive.

"The BBC is Britain's broadcaster but we also need to do more for each nation just as we are doing more for Britain globally.

"We know that viewers in Scotland love BBC television but we also know that they want us to better reflect their lives and better reflect modern Scotland. It is vital that we get this right."

He added: "The best way of achieving that is a dedicated channel for Scotland.

"It's a channel that will be bold, creative and ambitious, with a brand-new Scotland-edited international news programme at its heart."

It means the BBC's Six O'Clock News and Reporting Scotland will continue to be broadcast on BBC Scotland, which may not have happened if the corporation pressed ahead with plans for a 'Scottish Six' programme.

Critics of the current format say the Six O'Clock News deals with stories and topics which are devolved, such as the NHS in England, which is not relevant to Scottish viewers.

One critic of the broadcaster is the Scottish Government. The devolved administration has previously said the BBC must "catch up" with devolution.

In a series of tweets, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon welcomed the new channel but said it was "disappointing" there would be no Scottish Six programme.

The announcement comes after the corporation's main commercial competitor in Scotland, STV, said it would be launching a flagship programme anchored from Glasgow on new channel, STV 2.

STV News Tonight will be a new half hour 7pm weeknight programme using STV and ITV News resources to offer a comprehensive service of Scottish, UK and international news from a Scottish perspective.

Bobby Hain, director of channels at STV, said: "We are looking forward to the launch of STV's new public service broadcast channel for Scotland, STV2, in spring 2017.

"Announced in September 2016, the new channel will include the first integrated Scottish, UK and international news programme.

"STV News Tonight is a key part of STV's commitment to engaging news and current affairs and will be broadcast live, weeknights at 7pm with new news anchor Halla Mohieddeen. We welcome the BBC's enhanced commitment to the Scottish creative industries."