An defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid discussing secret matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret information while riding in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has 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 traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader defence situation highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in all areas of official activities, from transport usage to discussions habits.
