Overview
- Procurement minister Luke Pollard said officials are examining a possible blanket ban on Chinese‑made vehicles in the armed forces’ fleet, calling current precautions prudent.
- Dashboard stickers have been installed in hundreds of ‘white fleet’ cars and vans instructing personnel not to connect MoD devices and to avoid conversations above OFFICIAL inside vehicles.
- The MoD says the guidance is precautionary, applies to all civilian hire vehicles rather than only electric models, and there is no public evidence that conversations have been intercepted.
- Earlier measures include prohibiting EVs with Chinese components from sensitive sites and enforcing parking restrictions near key facilities such as RAF Wyton.
- The MoD operates about 745 fully electric and 1,414 hybrid vehicles as it pursues net‑zero goals, a shift that has intensified focus on supply‑chain and software risks highlighted since the 2023 discovery.