A defence official has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any car, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of official operations, including vehicle use to discussions habits.
