29 NHS trusts tagged as using Palantir say it’s not live

NHS England’s public list of trusts “realising benefits” from Palantir’s federated data platform has been contradicted by the trusts themselves. Through more than 100 freedom of information requests, the Guardian found that all 29 trusts listed as benefiting said the system is not live or they use none of its applications. NHS England maintains that nearly 140 trusts have reported benefits, and that its list includes those using the tools for back-office data analysis and cost calculation rather than patient care. Palantir says its software is helping deliver better care, citing 117,000 additional operations and reductions in discharge delays.

The discrepancy has become a political flashpoint. Health secretary Yvette Cooper faces calls from MPs and campaigners to axe the £330m contract, with Chi Onwurah urging use of the 2027 break clause to open the work to a UK-based supplier. Palantir’s UK chief, Louis Mosley, said ending the contract would be “putting politics above patients,” while the company has hired former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson as a senior lobbyist.

The episode also raises questions about how NHS England verifies benefit claims. The Office for Statistics Regulation is taking the matter forward under its casework function, after NHS England conceded this summer it could not prove cause and effect behind its operations figure.