A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the potential threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about secret information while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all areas of official activities, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
