UK Lawmakers Warn US Cloud Dependence Poses "Kill Switch" Risk to Critical Services

British politicians warned that the UK's reliance on American cloud providers constitutes "a strategic and economic vulnerability," citing the US CLOUD Act, which allows Washington to compel disclosure of data or order service withdrawal. Chi Onwurah, chair of Parliament's science and innovation committee, said the US effectively holds a legal "kill switch" over UK critical infrastructure. The UK government spends about £1 billion ($1.3 billion) annually on cloud services, with AWS and Microsoft accounting for as much as 80% of government purchases, per committee estimates. HMRC awarded AWS a £473 million, 10-year tax-data contract; the defense ministry signed a £400 million deal with Google Cloud; NHS trusts are migrating patient records to US servers. Onwurah said the UK cannot build a national competitor alone and urged cooperation with France and Germany. The European Commission is drafting a Cloud and AI Development Act, while France and Germany have shifted to sovereign alternatives. A government spokesperson said departments must weigh "risks associated with over-reliance on any individual supplier."