A LEADING car dealership in Co Mayo has gone into liquidation with the loss of up to 70 jobs.

Casey Garages held the franchises for Ford, Renault and Volvo, and operated out of premises in Castlebar and Ballina.

It also ran a car rental business out of Knock airport.

Staff were informed yesterday evening of the decision to seek the High Court appointment of a provisional liquidator for the business operated by Gerard Casey.

The announcement marks the latest significant closure of a dealership in the west of Ireland.

Peter Casey, a brother of Mr Casey, ran the Casey Auto Group in Roscommon, with outlets in Athlone and Carrick-on-Shannon. It went into liquidation in August with a similar number of job losses.

It was also a Ford and Volvo dealership.

Both businesses can trace their roots to a family-run car dealership started in 1925.

Eddie Murphy, chairman and managing director of Ford Ireland, said the dramatic fall-off in sales in the car trade this year had rendered the high operating costs of the business unsustainable.

This latest closure comes as a report into the industry by economist Peter Bacon has recommended that the Government cut vehicle registration tax (VRT) by 25 per cent in the upcoming budget, phasing it out over the following 10 years and replacing it with tax regime based on usage.

Commissioned by several Irish dealers after the 63 per cent fall in new car sales this year and the closure of several dealerships, it also calls for a VRT rebate scheme to be introduced on used cars exported out of the State.

The report, seen by The Irish Times and due for release next month, highlights the perilous situation in the Irish car market, estimating that a recovery in the industry to 2007 figures could take until 2013.