Palantir sues Mayor over blocked £50m police contract

The U.S. technology firm Palantir has initiated legal action against London Mayor Sadiq Khan for blocking a £50 million contract with the Metropolitan Police. The company’s lawyers have sent a pre-action letter to the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC), signaling its intent to challenge the decision in court.

Mayor Khan intervened to stop the deal in late May, preventing the Met from using Palantir’s software to automate intelligence analysis in criminal investigations. A spokesperson for Khan’s office stated the decision was based on procedural grounds, asserting that the police force did not present its required procurement strategy for approval and only fully engaged with one potential supplier, Palantir. The spokesperson said the process did not adequately demonstrate value for money for Londoners and emphasized the move was not based on political considerations.

A source within Palantir, however, argued that Khan made a subjective assessment and that the company cannot stand by if the procurement of its software is being politicized. The firm’s European branch chief, Louis Mosley, previously stated he believed the mayor was putting politics over public safety.