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A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been instructed to avoid talking about classified information in any vehicles.

Safety Guidance for MoD Staff

In a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.

The minister stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.

Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.

But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in all automobile, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.

When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”

Wider Defence Context

The announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.

Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.

This wider defence situation highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.