Former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson takes senior job at Palantir

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Labour former deputy leader Tom Watson is facing an onslaught of criticism for joining tech giant Palantir.

Lord Watson of Wyre Forest announced his new role as senior vice president on Friday, four months after he took a leave of absence from the House of Lords.

Palantir is a software firm that holds key UK Government contracts, including with the NHS and the Ministry of Defence, but many have concerns about its use of data and AI.

Lord Watson wrote on X: “Palantir is the most interesting company on the planet, doing work of real consequence: helping Britain and its allies defend themselves, helping police protect our citizens and helping NHS staff get patients treated and home sooner.

“London is comfortably its largest centre outside the US, home to more than one in six employees, the highest proportion among the world’s largest technology companies.

“We have challenges. Some criticism is propaganda. Some raise legitimate questions about large technology companies and sovereign control. Both require answers.

“Part of my role will be to correct false information while working with our engineers to ensure privacy, security and respect for sovereignty are at the heart of everything we do.”

The Labour former minister has faced an onslaught of criticism for his decision to take on the role, with many highlighting Palantir’s contract with the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and the US’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice).

Green Party MP Sian Berry claimed Lord Watson has been employed by Palantir “to lobby his friends in the Labour Government” and branded it a “disgrace” that he still holds the Labour whip.

She said: “Palantir, with its work for Ice in the US and the IDF, has no business at all in our NHS and public services.

“Tom Watson has been employed to lobby his friends in the Labour Government. It is a disgrace he is still a member of the House of Lords and holds the Labour whip.

“This is yet another example of the corrosive revolving door between politics and big business lobbying that has no place in public life.”

Lord Watson’s new role could see him in tension with senior Labour figures critical of his new employer.

For example, Palantir is suing London Mayor Lord Sadiq Khan of Tooting’s office after he blocked a £50 million deal with the Metropolitan Police.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham, meanwhile, is under significant pressure from Labour MPs and unions to ditch Palantir from government contracts.

The Labour peer was diagnosed with non-aggressive prostate cancer in March 2023 and later received the all-clear.

However, the former minister said on Substack in May that he was told earlier in the year that the cancer had returned.

Lord Watson said initial tests suggested the second bout of cancer had “gone”, but he was due to undergo more checks later this summer.