UK police forces being blocked from disclosing contracts with Palantir
27/06/2025 | Democracies for Sale
An article by Democracies for Sale on Substack raises concerns that the National Police Chiefs' Council's Central Referral Unit (CRU) is instructing police forces to withhold information about their contracts with the controversial US technology company Palantir.
The article claims that numerous Freedom of Information requests about Palantir contracts have been referred to the CRU, advising police forces to issue a neither confirm nor deny (NCND) response "that may or may not be held in relation to Palantir software used for covert purposes."
The article highlights that digital rights group Big Brother Watch (BBW) has complained to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). Jake Hurfurt, head of research and investigations at BBW, said: "The NPCC's central FOI unit is a danger to transparency and the public's right to know." He went on to say, "We are seeing requests on topics known to be referred to the CRU delayed as police forces await instruction on how to proceed, and requester's names being used as reference numbers in spite of FOI being applicant blind and fears of negative press being used to justify disclosure being blocked."
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