A Palantir-Linked Lobbyist Helped Run Burnham's Return to Parliament
A lobbyist whose firm worked for Palantir in 2024 and 2025 helped run communications for Andy Burnham's return to Parliament.
Martha Dalton, co-founder of Lodestone, campaigned for Burnham in the Makerfield byelection that brought him back. She worked closely with his team on strategy and rebuttals, taking six weeks of unpaid leave from Lodestone to do that work in Makerfield, according to reporting by The Guardian. She was later among the supporters who clapped Burnham into Downing Street in July.
Lodestone's work for Palantir involved promoting its software at events in Parliament. At those events, engineers showed MPs AI-powered systems for British public services. In short, a commercial tech seller was put directly in front of lawmakers who decide on buying, using and checking such tools.
Burnham stood in Makerfield as Labour's candidate while serving as mayor of Greater Manchester. The race was described as a two-horse contest between Labour's Burnham and Reform, according to The Journal. In May 2026 he was described as a leadership hopeful trying to return to Parliament through the Makerfield byelection.
He won. Burnham became prime minister in July 2026, Britain's seventh prime minister in a decade, according to Reuters. Known as the 'King of the North', he promised on taking office to reshape politics to build a new economic model.
Dalton has other political links. She previously worked on the autumn 2025 deputy leadership campaign for Lucy Powell, now the education secretary. The circle around Lodestone and Palantir is small. Labour peer Tom Watson took a full-time lobbying job with Palantir earlier this month after serving on Lodestone's strategic advisory council. Palantir had earlier hired Global Counsel, the lobbying firm of Peter Mandelson.
Palantir is trying to keep its £330m contract with NHS England to run the federated data platform, the system for joining up health data across services. That decision involves who controls health data, whether the NHS becomes too dependent on one supplier, and how ministers decide.
The broader context here is closeness, and how Westminster handles it. Unpaid leave creates a formal break between a lobbying firm and campaign work. It does not remove knowledge of a client's goals, messages or contacts in Parliament. For specialists, the question is whether current disclosure and recusal rules, the requirements to declare interests and step back from decisions, cover informal campaign advice, especially when a client has active business before government.
Looking at what this means for Burnham's government, the NHS data contract is why this story carries weight. Any renewal decision will be checked for fairness, competition and control of sensitive systems. Opposition parties, journalists and civic groups will ask whether access gave an advantage. The government will need to show a buying process separate from personal overlaps.
In my view, this fits a common pattern in British public life. Campaigns use a small group of strategists. That group often also works in consulting and lobbying. Moving between those jobs is legal and normal. Attention grows when a client list includes companies seeking state contracts. Palantir, Lodestone, Watson and Global Counsel show that overlap clearly. Dalton's six weeks in Makerfield add a direct link from that circle to the prime minister's comeback.
Looking ahead, what comes next will depend on records. Contract dates, meeting logs, interest declarations and any recusal terms will matter more than rival descriptions. The Guardian's Oct. 2, 2026 account provides the factual starting point. Further reporting and statements from those named will show whether this stays a question of perception or becomes a question of procedure.
