After Palantir, Assembly calls for greater investment in British businesses

In London, major public contracts involving sensitive data and critical public services should reflect high standards of ethics, transparency, accountability and social value, rather than being determined by cost alone.

The London Assembly today agreed a motion welcoming the Prime Minister’s commitment to use public procurement to support British businesses and ensure that eligible public contracts are subject to proper social value weighting.

It notes that the House of Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee described Palantir’s increasing presence across the public sector as an ‘unacceptable point of weakness’ and recommended that the Government exercise the February 2027 break clause in the NHS contract.

The Assembly has called on the Mayor to support greater investment in British-based alternatives to major overseas technology suppliers, and to write to Government urging it to apply those principles to major public-sector technology and data contracts.

Benali Hamdache AM, who proposed the motion, said:

“When we’re awarding public contracts, we should be backing British businesses and making sure public money is being spent in the public interest.

“We shouldn’t be handing more and more of our data and infrastructure to controversial companies like Palantir when there are ethical alternatives we can invest in.”

Gareth Roberts AM, who seconded the motion, said:

"London cannot afford to hand our most sensitive public data and critical services to a single overseas tech giant."

“This motion backs British businesses and demands the transparency, accountability and social value that should come before chasing the cheapest deal.”

“Ethics and trust must matter as much as cost when deciding who gets access to Londoners' NHS records and policing data."

The full text of the motion is:

“This Assembly welcomes the Prime Minister’s commitment to use public procurement to support British businesses and ensure that eligible public contracts are subject to proper social value weighting.

As Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said: “For too long, UK public procurement policy has been based on chasing cut-price deals around the world rather than helping our own British-based suppliers become more stable and competitive.”

This Assembly believes that in London, major public contracts involving sensitive data and critical public services should also reflect high standards of ethics, transparency, accountability and social value, rather than being determined by cost alone.

It further notes that the House of Commons Science, Innovation and Technology Committee described Palantir’s increasing presence across the public sector as an ‘unacceptable point of weakness’ and recommended that the Government exercise the February 2027 break clause in the NHS contract.

This Assembly also notes MOPAC’s decision not to approve a proposed contract between the Metropolitan Police and Palantir following concerns about the procurement process, and the subsequent legal action brought by Palantir against MOPAC.

This Assembly believes that London should champion a procurement model which supports British innovation, delivers social value, protects the public interest and avoids excessive dependence on individual technology suppliers.”

The Assembly calls on the Mayor to:

Write to the Government welcoming its commitment to back British businesses through public procurement and urging it to apply those principles to major public-sector technology and data contracts.

Urge the Government to act on the recommendations of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee when considering the February 2027 break clause in the NHS Federated Data Platform contract.

Support greater investment in British-based alternatives to major overseas technology suppliers.

Review Greater London Authority (GLA) Group procurement processes to ensure that major technology and data contracts give appropriate weight to ethics, transparency, social value, competition and the long-term public interest.

The meeting can be viewed via webcast or YouTube.

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