Data watchdog demands answers on Palantir patient data access

The national patient data watchdog has said it will investigate how Palantir staff came to have access to identifiable patient data in the federated data platform, despite previous assurances that this would not be the case.

In a statement published yesterday afternoon by the National Data Guardian (NDG), Nicola Byrne said the watchdog would “seek clarification” over why it was not previously informed that external contractors would be able to view identifiable patient data.

Reports emerged last month that staff from companies working on the FDP, including Palantir, would be granted “unlimited access” to identifiable patient data through the National Data Integration Tenant environment. This is where NHS organisations will submit raw data before identifying features are removed or pseudonymised.

In this week’s statement, Dr Byrne said there has been “subsequent confirmation from the [FDP] programme team that some external contractor staff also have access to identifiable patient information”.

The NDG is an independent adviser to the government and the health service and has no statutory investigatory or enforcement powers. The watchdog said: “We need to be confident that the positions presented to us are accurate, consistent, and clearly reflected in public-facing transparency materials. We have also emphasised the need for timely engagement with the NDG whenever significant programme decisions change in ways that may affect public trust, as in this case.”

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Source: HSJ, 4 June 2026