In January 2026, a group of 45 UK Members of Parliament put forward an Early Day Motion titled “UK digital sovereignty strategy”. The motion highlighted the reliance of government services, democratic functions, and critical infrastructure on a limited number of digital providers, specifically the US-based hyperscaler cloud providers AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, known as the Big Three, who serve over 90% of UK public sector organizations. Similarly, in October 2025, the European People’s Party group in the European Parliament adopted a position paper advocating for the establishment of a permanent EU Tech Forum to shape digital strategy and develop European digital infrastructure free from foreign control. This initiative preceded a summit on European digital sovereignty held in November in Berlin, which brought together over 900 policymakers, industry leaders, investors, researchers, and civil society representatives from 27 EU member states. At the summit, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz emphasized the importance of digital sovereignty for Europe, stating that it entails the ability to influence technology throughout the value chain according to European interests and needs, promoting fair competition. These efforts reflect ongoing endeavors in the UK and Europe to regain control and data sovereignty in response to the overwhelming dominance of US hyperscalers in both public and private sector infrastructure. Moving forward, European lawmakers are striving to enhance digital sovereignty, address anti-competitive practices in the market, and emphasize the importance of supporting domestic technology companies to prevent loss of technological capabilities. Key points from the article include the UK government's lack of a clear definition of data sovereignty, concerns about the monopolistic hold of AWS and Microsoft in UK public sector procurement, European initiatives to build secure European data infrastructure, and calls from campaigners to prioritize European digital sovereignty and support local cloud providers. The article underscores the need for European countries to nurture native digital capabilities to ensure a competitive and resilient digital landscape. By empowering local cloud providers and creating a conducive environment for European suppliers, the region can strengthen its digital sovereignty and reduce dependency on external entities.
