UK lawmakers call Palantir's role in public sector an unacceptable weakness

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LONDON, June 3 : A parliamentary committee singled out U.S. tech group Palantir as an instance of Britain's over-reliance on U.S. companies in the public sector, calling it an "unacceptable point of weakness" in a report on Wednesday.

Among Palantir's high-profile contracts is one with the National Health Service - valued at £330 million ($444 million) and designed to connect data to support decision-making by healthcare professionals.

The contract was awarded in 2023 for seven years, but warning against vendor lock-in, Parliament's Science, Innovation and Technology Committee urged the government to exercise a break clause.

The 70-page report found that Palantir had increased its presence despite a "clear mismatch with UK values".

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It cited Palantir's supply of software for the U.S. military and immigration services, as well as its billionaire co-founder Peter Thiel's political views.

Thiel, an early supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, has criticised the concept of a national health service, while the company has issued a manifesto making explicitly political arguments, the report said.

"The government's ... ambitions could be derailed at any time by a decision taken outside our shores based on the narrow interests of a foreign commercial or state actor," the committee's report added. 

Palantir has been approached for a comment.

The committee can only recommend and it is up to the government whether it follows its advice.

Its report concluded that the government lacked a coherent plan for the digital transformation of public services, calling its aim to save £45 billion annually through such changes "worryingly optimistic".

It also made broader recommendations for the government's digital strategy, including appointing a senior minister to lead it.

($1 = 0.7426 pounds)

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