Palantir Embedded Further Into NHS By Offering FDP Focused AI Data Apprenticeships To NHS Staff

This move locks in the US Healthcare culture into the NHS - NHS Patient Records Held By US Company

The US spy group and supplier to Israel's state war machinery, Palantir, is launching a new AI and data apprenticeship scheme for NHS staff as part of a partnership with Multiverse, the digital skills firm founded by Ex-Primeminister Tony Blair's son - Euan Blair. The programme, due to begin in the new year, is tailored specifically to support wider uptake of the NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP).

 

Under Blair, the NHS gave access to private healthcare and private finance initiatives which has cost the NHS Billions!

The initiative comes as NHS England intensifies efforts to mandate use of the FDP across the health service. Under the Medium Term Planning Framework, all providers are expected to adopt the platform’s “core products” by April 2026.

To date, 150 hospital trusts have agreed to join the FDP, with 77 actively using products. All integrated care boards except Greater Manchester have also signed up.

 

This will ensure Palantir remains fully in charge of NHS patient data, making the NHS in England reliant upon a foreign company to maintain the tech backbone of the NHS. Ulitamately this will ensure entry by the US health insurance companies into the UK and enable take-over of the NHS, which is President Trump's long-term goal.

Louis Mosley, Palantir’s executive vice president for the UK and Europe, said it was time “to double down to keep driving up the number of NHS staff who are trained on the technology”, adding that the partnership with Multiverse would be “central” to expanding capability.

Multiverse founder and CEO Euan Blair (son of Ex-Premier Tony Blair) said the NHS requires a workforce “confident and skilled in using data and AI” to unlock the full benefits of the FDP. “This partnership isn’t just about implementing new technology,” he said. “It’s about investing in the people who will use it every day to make a tangible difference to patient care.”

It is not yet clear how much funding Palantir is contributing to the scheme.

 

Palantir And Secret UK Government Deal

 

Good Law Project has learned that NHS England continued to conduct negotiations with Palantir after awarding it a highly controversial contract to manage patient data in November 2023.

The data held by the NHS – your private healthcare data and that of 65 million other UK residents – is among the most valuable datasets in the world. It could deliver better and cheaper healthcare, allowing the NHS to spend money in areas such as scientific research for better treatments. But only if it is managed well and for the benefit of the public.

Palantir was – without open competition – given a series of valuable preliminary contracts to adapt a platform for use in the NHS and then to run that platform. And, with that foothold, it secured the contract in November 2023.

 

Now NHS Patients have lost the ability to know who is using their private healthcare data, and to be able to deny or give permission for its use by third parties, such as the Police, US private healthcare companies, heathcare insurance companies; as well as legitimate research.

 

Your name and address is NOT seen as 'persona private data' by NHS England and the Dept of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the recent chanages to the GDPR in the UK, now gives you less control and safety of your own data.

 

Controversy Over Patient Safety, Data Protection, and lack of Scrutiny (2024–2025)

1. Legal Basis & Opt‑Out Concerns
• Lawyers have argued that parts of the FDP “lack a legal basis,” suggesting NHS England should offer a full opt‑out. The Register
• Campaigners (e.g. Foxglove, Just Treatment) have warned that patients may not have real control: some say the “right to object” is being downplayed, replaced by a narrower national opt-out. Just Treatment+2The Guardian+2
• According to a report from the National Data Guardian (2023–24), the National Data Opt-Out does not apply to all aspects of the FDP, which undermines some patient trust. GOV.UK
2. Security, Re‑Identification & Technical Risks
• NHS England’s own Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) has flagged risks: such as data leakage, re-identification of “anonymised” data, and insufficient testing or encryption in some areas. NHS England
• There is concern over whether “privacy enhancing technology” (PET) used in the FDP is sufficiently robust—or legally defensible—for handling personal confidential data. The Register
3. Public Trust & Transparency
• Critics say the FDP rollout suffers from a lack of public trust, especially because a private company (Palantir) is involved. The Guardian+2The Guardian+2
• Some ICS/data professionals argue that local systems may already be better than the FDP for certain use-cases, and that centralising too quickly could ignore existing good infrastructure. Digital Health
• Just Treatment and other campaigners accuse NHS England of not doing enough to engage with patients meaningfully about data use. Just Treatment
4. Palantir’s Role & Contract
• The £330 million FDP contract was awarded to Palantir, a U.S. firm with a controversial background, which has raised red flags among doctors, the BMA, and privacy campaigners. The Guardian+2The Guardian+2
• Some NHS hospital trusts have expressed concern that Palantir’s platform may reduce functionality compared to existing local systems. The Register
• There are fears that the involvement of Palantir could lead to mission creep, or mixing of health data with more sensitive data, especially given Palantir’s work in other high-risk domains. The Guardian
5. Patient Safety
• Separately, there’s concern about safety risks in the migration to electronic health records: a charity warned that the rollout of new EHR systems has led to under‑reported incidents and even patient harm. The Guardian
• Coroners have also flagged that poor data sharing (or incompatible systems) has contributed to preventable deaths, because clinicians didn’t have access to critical patient records. The Guardian
6. Use of Informal Communication Channels
• Some NHS staff reportedly use WhatsApp (or similar messaging) to share private patient data quickly because official systems are slow or not user‑friendly. Financial Times
• This raises data security concerns: while WhatsApp is end-to-end encrypted, using personal devices and apps may violate NHS information governance best practices.

Background: concerns over Palantir’s defence and intelligence work

Palantir’s deep involvement in defence, intelligence, and national security contracting has long attracted scrutiny in the UK and elsewhere. The US-based firm originally built software for American intelligence agencies, including tools used in counterterrorism and surveillance analysis.

It has also supplied data systems to the US Department of Defense, including for battlefield decision-making and military logistics.

These links have fuelled concerns among some NHS staff, civil liberties groups and data-privacy advocates, who question whether a company with roots in intelligence and warfare is an appropriate partner for a national healthcare system.

 

Critics have argued that Palantir’s background raises questions about long-term governance, data security, and the risk of “mission creep” in public-sector data platforms. Palantir has consistently said that it handles data under strict contractual and legal controls and does not own or exploit NHS data.

Sector response

The chief data and analytical officer network (CDAON), which has previously been cautious about imposing the FDP on trusts, said it “welcomes all training for analysts in all forms”. It noted that Multiverse is “platform agnostic”, meaning apprentices should gain transferable AI and data skills applicable beyond any single system.

An NHS spokesperson said the FDP is already helping to deliver “more joined-up care”, boosting productivity and supporting treatment for “thousands more patients each month”. They added that the new apprenticeships would help upskill staff in data analytics and AI “to continue to unlock its benefits for patients.”

However, there is no identifiable evidence to support this critics say. Especially given that the FDR is still in development stage and is not used across all NHS Trusts.