An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been instructed to avoid discussing classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss secret information while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This wider security environment highlights the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, including transport use to discussions practices.
