An activist organisation has said it is beginning a legal challenge to the contract between NHS England US firm Palantir Technologies for the development of the Federated Data Platform (FDP).
Foxglove, which claims to “stand up to tech giants”, said it has the support of the Doctors’ Association UK, the National Pensioners Convention and healthcare activist body Just Treatment in the action.
This has come days after NHS England confirmed its widely anticipated deal with a consortium led by Palantir, valued at £330 million.
The FDP will enable NHS trusts and integrated care systems (ICSs) in England to share data they already hold to support analysis and planning in the health service. Every hospital and ICS will have their own version of the platform to connect with others within the federated model.
Palantir’s background in security and surveillance technology has stirred up anxieties about how the data could be handled.
Foxglove said it has sent a letter to the Government saying it urgently needs to explain how the FDP will comply with the law, and if it refuses it will go to court.
Case on quicksand
“We’ve looked at the legal case for the FDP – and it appears to be built on quicksand,” it said.
“Our case argues that the government has no legal basis to go ahead unless they come back to parliament to explain how data will flow into the FDP while still complying with the law.”
It added: “We all want the NHS to use data better for the good of the NHS. But from the evidence we’ve got, it looks like this system – run by Palantir – will make things worse, not better.”
The Doctors’ Association UK has already called on the Government to pause the development of the FDP. It claimed to have the support of 160 doctors who had signed a letter on the issue.
Need for public scrutiny
Its spokesperson said: “DAUK remains concerned the Government is prepared to sign a nearly £0.5 billion deal which has not been subject to sufficient public scrutiny.
“This deal represents a poor deal for taxpayers and for patients. It goes against the key NHS values of ensuring that ‘we’re working together for patients’.
“The plans for an enforced opt-in to the FDP mean that basic issues of informed consent are being ignored. It is time to put a pause on all of this and engage in some proper scrutiny to get the best deal for all patients.”
