US-based technology firm Palantir lobbied a UK health minister to consider allowing its AI technology to access GP records despite this being ruled out in its NHS contract, according to the Guardian.
Working in partnership with tech equity campaign group Foxglove, the paper reported on WhatsApp messages between Palantir’s UK head, Louis Mosley, and former health minister Zubir Ahmed.
In the messages, Mosley argued that “the logic of joining up primary and secondary [care] data is unarguable”, adding that Palantir’s software was “ideal” for the job. This is despite GP data being expressly outside the purview of the US company’s £330 million contract with NHS England to manage its federated data platform (FDP).
The Guardian, which has seen the messages, reported that Palantir urged Ahmed to “get out ahead of” political opposition from doctors and critics of the company such as leader of the UK’s Green party, Zack Polanski.
The firm additionally said that: “The FDP is already delivering very strong results – but will deliver even more benefits faster with the right ministerial sponsorship.”
Allowing the company, which is also active in the defence space and whose chief executive is known for his sometimes unusual public appearances, to access NHS GP records is highly controversial. Groups representing patients and doctors, including the British Medical Association, have argued that there is not enough public trust in the company to allow it to integrate with GP surgeries.
When the Palantir contract was first announced by then-prime minister Rishi Sunak’s government three years ago, it explicitly said that “GP data will not be part of the national platform”.
The contract is currently under political scrutiny, with Labour Party MP Louise Haigh signalling in September that the government could end its Palantir partnership after a government report found that it could fail to generate any net value for the country.
However, reporting by the Financial Times last week suggested that ministers were unlikely to end the contract imminently due to the belief that triggering a break clause would cause too much disruption to the health service.
