There will be no record industry left in Ireland in seven years time, unless the Government acts on music piracy and other issues, according to the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA).

The group, which represents Irish record labels, said yesterday substantial job creation opportunities would be lost if the Government did not take action on issues such as the "dumping" of records on the Irish market from Britain.

Among the challenges to the industry is the arrival of companies with large retail bases, like Tesco, which according to IRMA chairman, Mr Paul Keogh, will affect how Irish record labels "do their business". He said it was not clear how Tesco, which intends to have a large retail music business in Ireland, would source its product.

Most music retailers up to now have sourced their product from Irish-based record companies. Mr Keogh said he was concerned Tesco would not follow this trend.

Mr Keogh was speaking in Dublin at an international conference on anti-privacy, organised by IRMA, which was told that piracy of music and videos in the Republic cost £30 million a year.

IRMA says the levels of piracy may mean international record labels deciding that there is no need for an Irish operation.

Measures recommended by IRMA to combat piracy are teams of private investigators and court orders for seizure and destruction of pirated material.