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A defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been advised to refrain from discussing classified information in all cars.

Security Guidance for MoD Staff

In a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.

He stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a issue in all modern cars.

Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.

However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.

When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”

Wider Defence Background

The announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause chaos to public transit.

Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.

The broader defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government activities, including transport use to discussions habits.