Across a variety of cities dozens of actions were held during the day, mainly outside hospitals. A key protest in London was outside Palantir HQ and focused on protesting against Palantir contracts in our NHS.
Palantir is an evil company which is complicit in war crimes across the world. Specifically it sells technology to Israel which enables its genocide of Palestinians. It has also developed an app which allows to Trump’s racist enforcers of ICE to harrass detain and deport migrants
Its CEO, Peter Thiel, is an techno-feudalist who actively promotes the idea that the human race will be replaced by machines. Since 2009, he has publicly held the view that freedom and democracy are incompatible. He backs far right and white nationalist candidates, and goes on long, rambling rants about how regulators are the anti-Christ.
Palantir has no place in our NHS. The NHS cannot keep us healthy if it uses a company that is so rotten. And it’s not just our NHS which is under threat – the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is also working with Palantir, giving away our financial data without any guaranteed safeguards.
Our health and financial data is some of the most personal information we have. It’s being given away to be processed by a malicious machine. And there is absolutely no good reason for it.
Aside from the fact that it’s being used to kill civilians around the world, Palantir tech just isn’t good tech. It’s faulty, crashes easily and is very difficult to use. But the NHS, the FCA, any public body – they’re not taking out these contracts because Palantir is the best tech provider. These contracts are being awarded because of Palantir’s colossal lobbying power. Contracts are going to the companies which can line the pockets of those in power. Not to the companies that are best for people.
In just one example amongst many, Martha Dalton was one of Andy Burnham’s key advisors on his Makerfield election win which got him into Downing Street in July. She is also a Palantir lobbyist whose company, Lodestone, pushed its software on MPs from 2024-2025.
The situation is reminiscent of the contracts worth billions of pounds that were awarded by the Tories during the height of the Covid pandemic to their political backers, regardless of their ability to produce the relevant public service or product.
Now the Labour government is awarding contracts to their friends just like the Tory government did during Covid. It killed people then, and it’s killing people now.
No to Palantir in our public services. No to capitalist cronyism. No to techno feudalism.
Free Palestine.