Subway are to create nearly 2,000 jobs in Ireland over the next 6 years.

The sandwich chain is to open more than 180 new stores here over the period with 400 of the new positions to come on stream this year alone.

Subway opened a total of 16 new stories in Ireland in 2013.

The first Subway store was opened in the Republic of Ireland in 1994.

Back in January 2012, the chain announced plans to increase the number of stores in Ireland the the UK to 2,000 by 2015, creating around 6,000 new jobs.

At the beginning of 2012, there were 99 stores in Ireland.