An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that security is a concern in every modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in every areas of official operations, from transport use to discussions practices.
