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An defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been advised to refrain from discussing classified information in any vehicles.

Security Advice for Defence Staff

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

The minister said that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.

We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.

But regardless of if you’re driving 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 car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.

When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”

Wider Security Context

The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.

Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.

The wider security situation highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all aspects of government operations, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.