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An defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing secret matters in all vehicles.

Safety Advice for Defence Staff

In a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret information while riding in Chinese cars.

He said that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.

We have a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.

However whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about safety.

When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”

Broader Defence Background

The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.

Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.

The broader security situation highlights the significance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of government operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.