MPs Warn Over UK's Reliance On US Spy Data Firm Palantir And Mismatch With UK Values
**Control Of NHS Patient's Records Under Fire**
Two petitions attracted almost 230,000 signatures in April calling on ministers to end public contracts with US data analytics company Palantir and cancel its £330 million contract to build NHS England's Federated Data Platform. Some NHS staff have been boycotting the system amid ethical concerns over the company.
The company provides public surveilance and facial recognition software to US Government and Israel, and now to some UK Police forces.
Campaign Against Palantir
In NHS, Dec 2023
Now, a cross-party parliamentary committee has urged the government to reduce its dependence on US data analytics company Palantir, warning that its expanding role across NHS, defence and police systems represents an "unacceptable point of weakness."
The Science, Innovation and Technology Committee stopped short of calling for an immediate end to Palantir's £330 million contract to build NHS England's Federated Data Platform, but said ministers should use a break clause due next year to reassess the arrangement and actively develop alternative suppliers.
The committee warned that the UK risked being "locked in" to a small number of mostly American technology providers at a time when the United States had become a less reliable partner under the Trump administration.
Palantir has defended its record, saying its platform has helped deliver more than 110,000 additional operations and reduced NHS waiting lists. Louis Mosley, the company's UK head, accused MPs of putting "the politics of the playground before public services."
However, concerns extend beyond performance. The committee cited a "clear mismatch with UK values," pointing to Palantir's contracts with the US military and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Separately, major shareholders — including Norway's sovereign wealth fund — backed a motion at the company's annual meeting calling for an independent human rights review, though the vote was unsuccessful.
MPs also called on the government to clarify the extent of Palantir's access to NHS patient data, following reports that some external staff had been granted unrestricted access to patient records.
The government has yet to respond formally to the committee's recommendations.
Source: Financial Times (paywall)
See also: NHS Grants US Spy Company Palantir Staff Sweeping Access To Patient's Identifiable Medical Records
