Parliamentary reports on frailty and the role of technology in the public sector

The select committee report on frailty acknowledge that under-resourcing of general practice contributed to low rates of assessments, but called for greater scrutiny to increase their volume. A separate report on digital tools across the public sector warned ‘hype’ was creating unrealistic expectations of cost-savings they can provide and said that being tied into large, overseas providers such as Palantir represented significant risks

Supporting people with frailty outside hospitals

Published 3 June, 2026

The 79th report of the 2024-26 session by the cross-party Public Accounts Committee

The report looks at frailty more widely, while drawing some conclusions relating to general practice.

• GPs are not assessing as many people for frailty as they should be doing, assessing 17% of those aged 65 and over in 2024-25.
• Those diagnosed with frailty are not getting follow-up assessments from GPs, only 16% got a medication review and 18% a falls risk assessment.
• Accountability frameworks are unlikely to be enough to increase these figures, new accountability measures should be introduced, particularly to address variation in frailty activity by GPs between different ICB areas.
•  NHS England has prioritised improving patients’ access and digital access to general practice. It should set out the basis on which it considers GPs have the capacity to deliver all the services and responsibilities expected of them.
• ICB cuts are undermining their ability and capacity to carry out their functions.

Rewiring the state: Delivering digital government

Published 3 June, 2026

A report by the cross-party Science, Innovation and Technology Committee

Rewiring the state: Delivering digital government is a report by the Science, Innovation and Technology committee looking at the government’s approach to digital transformation across public services, while also raising concerns about dependence on technology suppliers such as Palantir and questioning whether claims about AI, digitisation and other technologies delivering efficiency and financial savings are supported by sufficient evidence.

• The reports says digital transformation should be driven by clear public service outcomes rather than technology hype. Technology adoption should be justified by improvements in services, efficiency and resilience rather than assumptions that newer or more advanced tools automatically deliver the value being claimed.
• The committee warns that the government is becoming overly dependent on a small number of large technology suppliers, including Palantir, Microsoft and AWS, and appears too accepting of this concentration of power.
• Vendor lock in is identified as a major strategic risk. The report argues that lock in should not be treated as inevitable and calls for a strategy to reduce dependency on dominant suppliers and diversify the technology market.
• The committee is concerned about Palantir’s growing presence across the UK public sector, describing it as an “unacceptable point of weakness” because of the risks created by dependence on a single overseas provider.
• MPs argue that reliance on overseas technology providers can undermine UK digital sovereignty and create vulnerabilities that could be exploited by geopolitical or commercial pressures.
• The report recommends that the government actively pursues alternatives to supplier lock in, including greater use of in house capability and support for UK based technology providers.
• In relation to the NHS Federated Data Platform, the committee recommends exercising the February 2027 break clause in the Palantir contract and either developing an in house replacement or seeking an alternative UK owned provider.
• The committee stresses that procurement decisions should consider long term strategic dependency, not short term functionality or implementation benefits.
• The report is sceptical of ambitious claims about technology driven transformation and efficiency savings, warning against accepting projected benefits without evidence.
• “Hype” is identified as a barrier because of optimistic projections and messaging such as a supposed £45 million annual productivity saving across the public realm from digitisation. This encourages the belief that over optimism will be rewarded rather than achievement and honesty.
• MPs highlight a need for stronger scrutiny of technology investments to ensure genuine value for money, particularly where suppliers become deeply embedded in critical public services.
• The committee argues that the government should be more willing to challenge dominant technology vendors and avoid procurement approaches that make switching suppliers difficult or expensive.
• The committee also argues that the government needs stronger in house digital expertise so it can properly assess suppliers’ claims, secure better value for money and avoid becoming too reliant on a small number of large, often overseas, technology companies.

MPs warn that Palantir’s increasing presence in the UK public sector is an “unacceptable point of weakness”

Published 3 June

Comment from Science, Innovation and Technology Committee Chair Dame Chi Onwurah MP

 Accompanying press statement to the above report.

• The press statement highlights the committee’s warning that Palantir’s growing role across the government creates a weakness by increasing dependence on a single overseas technology supplier.
• MPs argue that vendor lock in isn’t inevitable and that the government should do more to reduce reliance on a small number of large technology companies, improve competition, and build in house digital capability.
• The committee’s concerns are primarily about strategic dependency, resilience and digital sovereignty.
• Chair Chi Onwurah MP argued that the government has become too willing to accept vendor lock in and should take a more active role in shaping the technology market rather than allowing a small number of firms to dominate critical public infrastructure.
• The Chair welcomes the government’s intentions to make the UK a ‘truly digital state,’ but it’s not clear how this will be delivered.
• They recommend that the government use the NHS Federated Data Platform’s 2027 break clause to reduce reliance on Palantir.