A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been told to refrain from talking about secret matters in all cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
The wider defence situation highlights the importance of strong protocols and caution in every aspects of government activities, from transport use to communication habits.
