MPs have called on the caretaker cabinet to pull out all the stops to prevent the Dutch government’s DigID identification system from falling into American hands.

This could become a reality following the planned takeover of Dutch cloud company Solvinity, which operates the DigID system, by an American firm.

Technical experts met MPs on Wednesday to discuss the risks of the takeover by Kyndryl. Under the US Cloud Act, cloud service providers can be legally required to make information available to the US government, even if the data are stored in Europe.

GroenLinks-PvdA MP Barbara Kathmann said ahead of the meeting she recognised that MPs themselves have no powers to block the takeover, but said she hopes the cabinet will do all it can. “Soon Trump will be able to turn off our digital government with one flick of the switch,” she said.

VVD MP Silvio Erkens said the Netherlands must stop the deal if no legal guarantee is provided that Dutch data will remain secure. If the takeover does go through without such guarantees, the government must remove responsibility for the DigID system from Solvinity, he said.

The DigID identity system is used to access services including the tax office, local authority services, health insurance and pension funds. Solvinity also provides secure cloud and data services to a range of government clients, including the MijnOverheid portal and the ministry of justice, as well as DigID.