An defence official has confirmed that the MoD is currently examining the potential threats posed by Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The broader defence environment highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of government activities, including transport use to discussions habits.
