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| Volume 56 Number 26, September 12, 2026 | ARCHIVE | HOME | JBCENTRE | SUBSCRIBE |
Workers' Weekly reported in May [1] on the just "No Palantir in the NHS" people's campaign. Many local organisations in cities and towns across the country are organising opposition and opt-out campaigns. This is continuing to gain momentum throughout 2026 with a day of action planned for Thursday, October 1, across Britain [2]. This people's campaign is against the government's plan to embed Palantir and other data companies who are part of the war industries into the British state and with them control all of the NHS data of patients. This goes directly against the people's response that is No Palantir in the NHS! and opposing Palantir and the joint abuse by the government and Palantir of people's data where people are demanding the right to privacy of patient and other data so only they can decide on its use.
According to new research by Foxglove [3] "almost a third (30%) of English hospital trusts using US spy tech firm Palantir's Federated Data Platform (FDP) tool are carrying out fewer patient operations than before they started using it, according to data obtained from the National Health Service (NHS)." This new research further exposes the case for keeping Palantir in our NHS with a third of hospitals using Palantir's scheduling tool are reportedly doing fewer operations than before they started, while some trusts classed as "live" users are barely using the platform at all saying their own systems are more reliable.
Foxglove's research says: "The UK government and Palantir have repeatedly credited the tool with increasing the overall number of procedures carried out in hospitals, but have until now refused to publish any data beyond a single 'FDP uptakes and benefits' page. This page claims various performance metric improvements, but does not provide any of the data behind the claims, such as a breakdown of the performance of individual trusts which have adopted Palantir's tools.
"New NHS data, obtained by Foxglove via Freedom of Information requests, says 41 NHS trusts are using Inpatient CCS, Palantir's FDP module for helping hospitals to manage scheduling patient operations. Out of those 41, 13 (about 30%) report they have carried out fewer operations overall than they did before they started using the FDP tool.
"Between them, those 13 trusts counted 9,073 fewer operations taking place after adopting Inpatient CCS, compared to the same period before adoption."
In addition, the government's new Health Bill 2026, at present being debated in Parliament, includes new legislation on the FDP and "Single Patient Record" (SPR) contracted to Palantir for £330 million. The legislation, which had reached the Committee stage before the Parliamentary recess, was amended on July 16 by the government. In the information clause on the FDP and SPR, Section 47 gave the Secretary of State mandatory powers to force NHS Trusts, Foundation Trusts, Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), and GP practices to share any patient data the Secretary of State specifies. In spite of the opposition amongst the people and in Parliament, this has been strengthened in the amendment, now Section 51, to widen the scope of the information collected in "patient information" from care, health services and from patients data for "operational purposes". It expands the lists of bodies who receive NHS funding as being compelled to share data and strengthens the Secretary of State enforcement powers with no opt-out rights, or oversight.
| THE MAKING OF
SECTION 51 (2026) How the Government Consolidated Control over NHS Patient Data |
| 1.
FEBRUARY–MARCH 2026 — BILL INTRODUCED • Clause 47 appears in the Health Bill as introduced. • Establishes compulsory duty for NHS bodies to share patient data. • No patient opt-out; broad Secretary of State powers. • Immediate objections from BMA, health workers and health campaigns. |
| 2. APRIL
2026 — EARLY SCRUTINY • Committee witnesses warn of “centralised extraction of patient data”. • Government insists clause is “technical modernisation”. • No amendments proposed to limit powers. |
| 3. MAY
2026 — PRESSURE MOUNTS • MPs raise concerns about safeguards and oversight. • Government signals intention to “clarify” the clause. • No opt-out considered. |
| 4. JUNE
2026 — DRAFT AMENDMENTS CIRCULATE • Drafts show expanded regulation-making powers. • Broader definitions of “patient information”. • New enforcement mechanisms. • Still no opt-out. |
| 5. EARLY
JULY 2026 — NEW CLAUSES INSERTED • Government inserts new clauses (e.g., NHS manager regulation). • Clause numbering shifts downward. • Clause 47 becomes Clause 51 in the amended Bill. |
| 6. 16 JULY
2026 — BILL AS AMENDED IN COMMITTEE • Clause 47 officially becomes Section 51. • Expanded list of bodies compelled to share data. • Broader definition of “patient information”. • Mandatory compliance with technical specifications. • Audit and reporting duties added. • Strengthened Secretary of State enforcement powers. • No patient opt-out. |
| SECTION 51: WHAT
IT NOW MEANS • Compulsory data sharing by all NHS bodies. • Centralised authority vested in Secretary of State. • Expanded powers to define, demand, and extract information. • Enforcement mechanisms to ensure compliance. • No patient opt-out; no democratic oversight. Source AI |
Through these undemocratic measures in the Bill, the government is trying to force GPs, hospitals and other providers to share patient data for the SPR contract with Palantir and other data companies. This is part of the government's plan to embed Palantir and other IT corporations, like Oracle and Infosys who are part of the war industries into the British state and with it control all of the NHS data of patients.
This is a profound lesson for all those in the NHS, patients and people alike, as to what the government and the whole cartel party system in Westminster has in store for the NHS and society on their data. The government's plan to hand control of the NHS data - "one of the largest databases in the world" - to Palantir must be opposed. It is unconscionable that people's data be put under the control of narrow vested interests and utilised to strengthen the police powers of the state. The rights of all to security and privacy of their patient and other personal data must be upheld by a modern society. No to Palantir in the NHS and the abuse of people's personal data! End the contracts with Palantir and other private data consortiums!
Notes
1. No Palantir in the NHS: Oppose Palantir and the Government's
Joint Abuse of People's Data, Workers' Weekly, May 16, 2026
https://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wwie-26/ww26-15/ww26-15-02.htm
2. No Palantir in our NHS: Day of action
https://www.globaljustice.org.uk/event/no-palantir-in-our-nhs-day-of-action/
3. Foxglove research, June 16, 2026
https://www.foxglove.org.uk/2026/06/16/nhs-trusts-palantir-fdp-tools-fewer-operations/
