An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese cars, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
He explained that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but noted that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of official operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
