Cloud Inquiry Chair Resigns from UK Competition Watchdog Citing Stagnant Progress on AWS and Microsoft Reforms

Kip Meeks resigns from the CMA, citing the slow pace of cloud reforms for AWS and Microsoft. Discover the editorial take on the UK's stalling tech regulation.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 4, 2026, 4:42 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from The Register

The Sudden Resignation of a Key Regulatory Figure

The leadership of the United Kingdom’s investigation into the cloud computing sector has been thrown into turmoil following the early departure of Kip Meeks. Having served as the inquiry chair for the Competition and Markets Authority since 2018, Meeks officially vacated his post in late January, nearly twelve months before his term was set to expire. His exit is accompanied by a public rebuke of the agency, specifically regarding the sluggish implementation of market reforms that were initially proposed to foster a more competitive environment in Britain’s digital infrastructure.

A Market Dominated by Dual Hyperscalers

Central to the ongoing friction is the overwhelming market share held by Amazon Web Services and Microsoft, which together account for approximately 90% of the UK’s cloud services. In July 2025, a CMA report chaired by Meeks recommended that both US-based firms be designated with "strategic market status." This classification was intended to trigger more rigorous oversight and mandatory changes to business practices that currently hinder interoperability and penalize customers for migrating workloads. However, nearly a year after these findings were published, the regulator has failed to initiate formal enforcement actions.

Internal Criticisms of Regulatory Inertia and Independence

In statements following his resignation, Meeks expressed deep concern over the "glacial pace" at which the CMA is processing the inquiry's recommendations. Beyond the timeline of the investigation, which has now spanned two and a half years, Meeks highlighted potential risks to the watchdog's structural independence. He specifically pointed to internal shifts that could move decision-making power from independent panels to committees populated by CMA executives. This internal reorganization, combined with the slow movement on tech giant regulation, suggests a growing rift between the agency’s investigative experts and its administrative leadership.