Tens of thousands of individuals have formally demanded that NHS England blocks the Palantir-powered national medical data platform from handling their personal information. Over 44,000 people have filed legal objections to their health data being shared with, stored in, or used by the nationwide Federated Data Platform (FDP) operated using the US company’s AI technology.
Legal Objections and Campaign Background
This coordinated campaign utilizes rights enshrined in data protection laws, meaning the NHS must stop using the data unless it can provide a "compelling reason" to continue. Hundreds of thousands have signed petitions demanding the government cancel its £330 million deal with Palantir. Andy Burnham will be required to make a decision to support or terminate the Palantir contract within months.
Campaigners have expressed anger at Palantir’s involvement with the Israeli military and Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Two House of Commons select committees have called for the Labour Party to exercise a break clause in the seven-year deal, which comes into effect in February 2027.
Voices of Concern
David Murray, a retired IBM systems engineer and one of the individuals requesting the data block, stated:
“"I am a believer in the NHS having really good data on their patients, but I want it to be something you can really trust to be used for the right purposes. I am not happy about Palantir’s involvement with the IDF in Gaza and ICE in America."
On Wednesday, the human rights group Amnesty International and the patient campaign group Just Treatment staged a protest outside Palantir’s London headquarters. They parked a van styled like a shot-up Palestinian ambulance, asking:
“"Why should a company linked to Israel’s destruction of Gaza’s healthcare system have any place in ours?"
