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A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while personnel have been told to refrain from discussing classified information in all cars.

Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel

In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified material while riding in Chinese vehicles.

The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that security is a issue in every contemporary cars.

Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.

However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.

After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”

Broader Security Context

The revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.

Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.

This broader security situation highlights the significance of strong measures and caution in all areas of government activities, including vehicle use to communication habits.