THE competition watchdog is being urged to look at the likely merger of Sainsbury’s and Asda amid concerns over loss of jobs and restricted consumer choice.

The £10 billion deal was under wraps until Saturday but is expected to be announced as soon as today. A merger between the two supermarkets would result in them having a bigger combined share of the grocery market than than the current leader Tesco.

Sainsbury’s and Walmart-owned Asda are the second and third-largest grocery retailers in Britain but they have been squeezed by the rise of lower-cost supermarkets Aldi and Lidl.