NHS England has amended its claims regarding the effectiveness of software developed by Palantir Technologies Inc following an investigation by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). The OSR mandated that NHS England prominently display a caveat on its main webpage, acknowledging that key data does not definitively prove the software's effectiveness.

The regulator also advised NHS England to clearly label communications about the benefits of Palantir's Federated Data Platform (FDP) and ensure any figures cited by ministers or in official briefings are communicated accurately. This action stems from widely reported claims that the FDP facilitated 110,000 additional operations and a 15 per cent reduction in discharge delays.

Concerns were raised after the FT revealed NHS England had quietly added a methodological caveat, stating conclusions about cause and effect could not be drawn due to uncontrolled variables. The OSR's investigation also followed admissions of data errors by several hospitals regarding discharge delays. NHS England has agreed to enhance transparency by making the caveat more prominent, highlighting methodology changes, and publishing disaggregated trust-level data.

The OSR also addressed concerns about potential criticism suppression at NHS England, stating it was assured of the independence of the organisation's statisticians. The health service will also clarify that it has not authored or verified case studies on its FDP usage webpage. The future of the £330mn contract with Palantir, which has faced scrutiny due to the company's ties to the US defence sector, remains a decision for the new health secretary.