BOSSES at discount supermarket giants Lidl have confirmed two new stores for Blackburn and Bolton will open their doors over the next three years.

Four hundred new jobs are expected to be generated by the East Lancashire and Greater Manchester expansion programme.

These will include a new Lidl for Furthergate, in Blackburn, on the Fix Auto site, once the historic firm has relocated, as revealed by the Lancashire Telegraph earlier this year.

And proposals are also being advanced for a new supermarket for the chain in Bromley Cross.

This announcement follows on from a project to refurbish their Farnworth store and their Todmorden outlet relocating further along Halifax Road.

Further sites for Lidls have also been identified at Oldham Mumps and the Altrincham Retail Park.

And stores will be opened, before the end of 2022, in the centre of Manchester, Cheetham Hill, Winton, Glossop, Tameside and Eccles.

Nick Harvey, the company's regional property head, said the firm had opened more than 30 stores in East Lancashire and Greater Manchester since they came to the UK in 1994.

He added: "As customer demand for the Lidl offering continues to grow...we’re excited and proud to be in a position to continue opening new stores and creating more employment opportunities across the region."