Electric vehicles with Chinese parts 'BANNED from UK military sites' (2025)

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Electric vehicles with Chinese parts have been banned from British military sites amid spying fears, it has been revealed.

There are concerns that EVs kitted out with cameras, sensors, radar and internet connectivity could be used for surveillance purposes.

Chinese-manufactured EVs, such as those made byBYD, GWM, Omoda, and Jaecoo, are increasingly popular in the UK.

Labour peer Lord Coaker, a defence minister, recently told Parliament that some defence sites have stricter rules on EVs but declined to give 'specific details'.

According to The i Paper, staff at RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire have been told to park EVs with Chinese technology at least two miles away from key buildings.

It also reported that certain EVs have been prohibited from the military training area on Salisbury Plain.

The Government's recent row with British Steel's Chinese owners over its Scunthorpe plant has sparked fresh scrutiny of China's involvement in critical UK infrastucture.

Under Beijing's national intelligence laws, Chinese firms are compelled to 'support, assist, and co-operate' with state intelligence work.

The Pathfinder building at RAF Wyton has been described as the 'jewel in the crown' of UK defence intelligence and plays a critical role in the work of the 'Five Eyes' intelligence allies.

Salisbury Plain has long been a training area for the British military and has, more recently, been used to train Ukrainian troops amid the country's war with Russia.

James Bore, a cyber security expert, said EVs are constantly reporting data back to manufacturers, increasing the potential for 'misuse' by adversaries.

He said: 'By their nature electric vehicles tend to be more modern.

'They have more technology and intelligence in them and almost all of them will report back to the company that runs them and give efficiency statistics so they can better calculate battery usage.

'You cannot update a combustion engine midway through driving but you can update the algorithms that govern, charge and discharge a military personnel's EV battery on the fly.

'It does mean that you are being reported on. If you're looking at sensitive sites that is data that could be useful and it could be misused.'

In his answer to a recent written question in Parliament, Lord Coaker said the Ministry of Defence was working with other departments 'to understand and mitigate any potential threats to national security from vehicles'.

'Our policies and procedures take account of the potential threats from all types of vehicle, not just those manufactured in China, and we have issued appropriate internal direction to all drivers and passengers,' he added.

'There are no centrally mandated policy restrictions on the movement of Chinese manufactured vehicles.

'We are aware that individual defence organisations may have stricter requirements relating to electric vehicles on some sites, but we do not provide specific details for security reasons.'

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'Protecting national security is the foundation of everything we do.

'We have strict security procedures in place to ensure all sensitive information is protected.'

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