Delegates at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool have submitted an emergency motion calling on the government to terminate a controversial £330m contract with the US technology firm Palantir.
The motion, spearheaded by the Socialist Health Association and at least three constituency Labour parties, urges ministers to exercise a “break clause” in the contract for the NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP). While the contract was signed for a seven-year term in November 2023, a clause exists that would allow the government to exit the agreement in February 2027.
To meet the procedural requirements of that clause, the government would need to make a formal decision by December 2026.
Data concerns and political pressure
The Federated Data Platform is designed to connect disparate sets of patient data across the NHS, with the aim of reducing waiting lists and improving care coordination between different trusts.
Opponents of the deal, including the British Medical Association (BMA) and the union Unison, have expressed long-standing concerns over data privacy and the involvement of a private US-based company in handling sensitive patient information, and have supported calls to exercise the contract’s break clause.
The political optics of the contract have been further complicated by the recent appointment of Lord Tom Watson, the former Labour deputy leader, as a senior vice president at Palantir UK. Critics have described the move as a “revolving door” between the party and the tech sector, according to reporting by Tech Policy Press.
Contract under review
The current Labour leadership has yet to confirm whether it will support the emergency motion or move to trigger the break clause.
While the government has previously described the platform as a “gamechanger” for NHS efficiency, delegates in Liverpool are now pushing for a transition away from the private firm.
The conference committee is expected to decide shortly whether the emergency motion will be formally debated and put to a vote by the wider membership. Should it pass, it would place significant pressure on Health Secretary Wes Streeting to provide a clear timeline for the future of NHS data management before the December 2026 deadline.