An defence minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been instructed to refrain from talking about classified information in all cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that security is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader security situation underscores the importance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of government activities, including vehicle use to communication habits.
