A defence minister has revealed that the MoD is actively looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been told to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in 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 vehicle, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to restrict those secret conversations 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 MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese 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 Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This broader security situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, from vehicle usage to communication practices.
