The Scottish First Minister has said there are obstacles in the way of a proposal to build a bridge between Northern Ireland and Scotland.

But Nicola Sturgeon did not rule out the idea which has been promoted by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

Ms Sturgeon said she believed there are other ways of strengthening relations between Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

“We will always talk about how we can strengthen relations, we need to have practical and achievable ideas,” she told the Press Association during a visit to Dublin on Monday.

“I have representations made to me about the idea of a bridge, there are obviously a lot of challenges and things to be discussed there.

“Whether it’s around a bridge or in other ways strengthening the relationship between Scotland, the north of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is a big priority for my government.”

In Northern Ireland, DUP leader Arlene Foster and MP Sammy Wilson have both expressed their support for the building of a bridge to Scotland.

Conservative Party leadership contender Boris Johnson also spoke in favour of such a bridge when he appeared at the DUP party conference in September.

Last year, Architect Professor Alan Dunlop proposed two options for the bridge which could connect either Larne and Portpatrick or Mull of Kintyre with Torr Head, and estimated the cost to be between £15 billion and £20 billion.