Prime Minister Andy Burnham Faces Pressure Over Palantir NHS Deal

Prime Minister Andy Burnham is facing significant pressure from colleagues and backbench MPs to terminate a contentious contract between the National Health Service (NHS) and the U.S. firm Palantir, according to reporting from WIRED.

Palantir currently holds public sector contracts totaling approximately £670 million, spanning policing, defense, and health. The most scrutinized is a £330 million deal to manage healthcare data via the NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP). While some officials and parliamentary veterans support the provider, others—including the Socialist Campaign Group and MPs such as Clive Lewis and Rachael Maskell—are pushing for the government to utilize a break clause that would end the contract in 2027.

MP Rachael Maskell, a former NHS clinician, argued in a February parliamentary debate that the presence of the "US spytech company" in NHS data could undermine patient trust and worsen health outcomes; she further highlighted her clinical background to justify her opposition in a debate in April. Clive Lewis told WIRED that Palantir's strategy to embed itself in public services leaves the UK "dangerously exposed" to a company governed by U.S. law.

Conversely, Varun Chandra, an adviser responsible for managing the relationship between Westminster and Big Tech, has been a quiet advocate for the firm. Chandra, formerly a managing partner at Hakluyt and founder of Hakluyt Capital, is viewed by some as a critical link to U.S. decision-makers. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick previously praised Chandra's "essential" role in a 2025 trade deal.

Public opposition is growing, evidenced by a non-official petition to remove Palantir from the NHS that has reached 177,000 signatures. Three Whitehall sources told WIRED that any decision to scrap the deal must be made by the autumn to avoid botching the transition to an alternative provider or an in-house system.