Deputy Dooley was speaking after a protest by the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) last night at Foynes Port resulted in a blockade, which prevented the movement by road of wind turbines.
Deputy Dooley said: "The IRHA has made serious allegations regarding illegal haulage activity. It appears that European cabotage rules are being broken, creating an unfair competitive advantage for non-domestic hauliers which is resulting in the loss of jobs in the region.
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"Haulage operators from Europe have been employed to transport parts for wind turbines. These hauliers cannot operate in Ireland unless they have an Irish road haulage licence and they drive Irish registered trucks; the operators have neither of these.
"The IRHA have also said that these activities have been on-going for a number of weeks, which has forced many Irish hauliers to put their staff on notice. The association say they have alerted Gardaí and the RSA of these activities
"I am calling on the RSA as well as the Ministers for Transport and Justice to take action on this illegal activity. The IRHA has been forced to take action to highlight this and the Minister has a responsibility to meet with the association to hear their concerns."
(CD/JP)
