Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the contract for the Federated Data Platform will require Palantir to publish an open standard data schema to enable interoperability with alternative platforms.

The contract for the Federated Data Platform and Associated Services (FDP AS) includes provisions to ensure interoperability and support for market development through the use of open standards.

As part of this, the platform is underpinned by the NHS Canonical Data Model (CDM), which provides a consistent and open data schema that all parties connecting to the FDP must use. This ensures that data can be shared and understood across different systems and platforms, supporting interoperability and reducing the risk of vendor lock-in.

To further support transparency and innovation, NHS England has taken steps to publish the CDM on GitHub. This enables developers and suppliers to understand the structure and semantics of the data used within the platform, and to build compatible solutions that can integrate with the FDP.

The publication of the CDM is part of a broader commitment to openness and technical sovereignty, ensuring that the National Health Service retains control over its data infrastructure and can transition to alternative providers if needed.