A defense official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible security risks posed by Chinese vehicles, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified material while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister explained that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The broader defence situation highlights the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all areas of government operations, including transport use to communication practices.
