Streeting refuses to publish secret Palantir NHS briefings

As Palantir’s global surveillance empire expands, Wes Streeting is building a fortress of secrecy around the firm’s £330m NHS contract. The health secretary is currently refusing to publish vital briefing documents sent to Streeting and health minister Karin Smyth – papers that will provide the truth about the risks of Palantir’s data platform.

Streeting’s team argues that he doesn’t have to publish this material because it was used for “policy development”. But this is not a speculative proposal – Streeting is already rolling out Palantir technology across the NHS. He’s asking the public to accept vague reassurances while denying us access to the facts on the ground.

This secrecy is even more alarming given Palantir’s track record. Doctors and the British Medical Association have warned against handing sensitive health infrastructure to a company with deep ties to defence and intelligence agencies. Palantir’s role in Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and Benjamin Netanyahu’s genocide in Gaza has sparked a public backlash. And unease also appears to be growing within government as well, with the Financial Times reporting that ministers are exploring whether they can trigger a break clause in Palantir’s contract.

Streeting insists that “it is not Palantir’s data”, that health records belong “to the NHS and to patients”. But if that was true, why would he need to hide details about the spy-tech firm’s systems?

This isn’t the first time the health department has tried to keep its business with the tech giant behind closed doors. When the government first published Palantir’s contract, 417 out of its 586 pages were completely blanked out. We fought for greater transparency – and won. Now the fight continues.

We’re supporting award-winning investigative outlet Democracy for Sale to challenge the information commissioner’s decision to keep the ministerial submissions about Palantir’s platform hidden. The government can’t use a loophole to keep us all in the dark.

If Streeting is confident that this deal is in the public interest, he should have nothing to hide.