WES Streeting took tens of thousands of pounds from donors with links to arms firms and controversial US tech firm Palantir, The National can reveal.
It comes as the Ilford MP and former health secretary has been appointed the UK’s new Defence Secretary in Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s Cabinet.
He will now be responsible for delivering the UK Government’s Defence Investment Plan, which includes a pledge to increase defence spending by £15 billion in the coming years.
According to Electoral Commission data, however, Streeting has received tens of thousands of pounds from donors with links both to the arms trade and to Palantir – which already holds major contracts with the NHS and the Ministry of Defence.
The SNP have told The National that there are “questions to answer” for the Labour Party.
One of those donors is businessman and long-time Labour donor Trevor Chinn, who has made seven donations to Streeting since 2021 according to Electoral Commission data and the register of MPs interests, totalling £31,750.
That includes £13,250 this year, the bulk of it in a single £12,000 payment on June 17, at a point when Streeting was still seen as a potential challenger for the Labour leadership.
Chinn, 90, is a senior adviser to CVC Capital Partners – according to their website – a private equity giant which specialist industry reports have said is among the firms building dedicated strategies for European defence investments.
Its current investments include Ontic, which describes itself as a “leading manufacturer to the world's civil and military aircraft”.
Among its large portfolio, CVC has also backed Smiths Detection, a security technology company that has worked with armed forces for decades and specialises in threat detection and screening systems used in airports, borders and military settings.
It is unclear, however, how much of an active role he still has with the firm.
However, Streeting also received £20,000 in June this year from businessman Daniel Luhde‑Thompson, a strategic adviser and former chief technology officer at Quadrature Capital.
In 2024, openDemocracy reported that the Cayman Islands‑registered hedge fund held “$121m worth of shares in a range of arms, tech and logistics firms” supplying Israel’s war effort in Gaza.
Quadrature’s most recent US regulatory filings show total investments of around $8.4bn, including a near‑$35m stake in Palantir, the US data analytics company embedded in both NHS and MoD systems.
Co‑founded by Donald Trump supporter Peter Thiel, Palantir has been involved with the NHS since 2023, when it won a £330m contract to run the Federated Data Platform, a system designed to coordinate patient data across the health service.
Streeting had no role in awarding that contract, but as health secretary he defended the use of Palantir software, describing such platforms as “absolutely critical to the future of the NHS” even while distancing himself from the company’s politics.
Palantir has been widely criticised for its deep ties to the US military and to the Israeli Defence Forces amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
The company has already secured what has been described as the biggest single MoD data contract to date: a £240m deal signed last year to provide “data analytics capabilities supporting critical strategic, tactical and live operational decision making” for the armed forces.
Quadrature’s portfolio also includes other defence or defence‑adjacent stocks, such as almost $5m in AeroVironment, the US manufacturer of small drones and loitering munitions including the Switchblade series, which are widely used by the US Army and other militaries.
In 2023, Israel requested 200 of AeroVironment’s Switchblade 600 “kamikaze” drones.
Quadrature also holds positions in engineering and infrastructure group AECOM, in transmission maker Allison Transmission, and in ATI – all companies with significant exposure to the aerospace and defence sectors.
A spokesperson for the firm, however, said that any reference to Quadrature's 'holdings' in specific companies “fundamentally misrepresents” the fund's business model.
The statement went on: “Our trading is automated and we take short and long positions in the stock market across all industries, targeting neutral exposures across industry groups. We are agnostic to the underlying nature of the stocks we trade and primarily seek to correct inefficiencies in the market. We do not any hold positions for extended periods of time. SEC disclosures only show our long positions, resulting in an asymmetric portrayal of our trading strategy in the filings.”
SNP MSP Zen Ghani said: “Wes Streeting holds the record for private healthcare donations and it landed him the health secretary job - that seems to be the way of it with the Labour Party.
“There are questions to answer here for the Labour Party as yet again we see donations linked to companies appearing to fund Israeli arms throughout the genocide in Gaza.”
He added: “The Westminster establishment is full of murky donations like these and through a fresh start with independence we can be free of it for good.”
The Scottish Greens, meanwhile, said donations like these are “questionable at the best of times” but deserve “even greater scrutiny” now that Streeting is Defence Secretary. “The arms industry thrives on conflict and repression. Those who profit from it are profiting from war and violence, and the associated destruction and death. Wes Streeting’s job is to regulate the industry, not to cosy up to it,” MSP Maggie Chapman said.
“It’s time for him to do the right thing by returning the money and make clear that he will not accept further donations from individuals with such links.
“If ministers like Streeting are serious about restoring people’s trust in politics, they cannot continue to take money from wealthy backers with special interests.”
She added: “People deserve transparency, accountability and confidence that decisions are being made in the public interest not in the interests of arms industry giants or those with the deepest pockets.”
A spokesperson for Wes Streeting said: “All donations are declared in the proper way in accordance with the rules. He will continue to comply with all government guidance, as he did in his previous ministerial role.
“His focus is on delivering for our Armed Forces, ensuring the UK is fit to face the future.”
