The Pen Passed to One Member
On September 5, 2026, the European Parliament named Diego Solier, a Spanish MEP from the European Conservatives and Reformists group, as lead rapporteur on the Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA). CADA is the European Commission's own answer to a data point it published itself: EU-based providers' share of the European cloud market has fallen from roughly 29 percent in 2017 to around 15 percent by 2022.
A rapporteur does not just chair debate. Solier will draft the committee's amendments, negotiate the compromise text with the Council, and decide which changes make it into the version Parliament finally votes on. For a law billed as Europe's answer to cloud dependency, that pen now sits with one member.
How the File Landed on His Desk
Parliament does not assign rapporteurs by open competition for subject-matter expertise. Political groups receive points based on their size and bid for files like an auction; a group that wins a file then names one of its own members to run it. Specialists can cost a group fewer points, but nothing in the procedure requires one.
CADA, a file that will decide how the EU polices its own dependence on non-EU cloud and AI vendors, was allocated this way. Solier's own European Parliament profile lists him on the Industry, Research and Energy committee and the Petitions committee - not a specialist technology portfolio.
His Own Words on Rules, Reactors, and Washington
Solier has not been quiet about what he thinks Europe should do differently. In an interview, he called for "liberalisation, fewer taxes, less red tape, real fiscal incentives," arguing that EU compliance burden forces small companies to run entire departments just to keep up.
On energy, he said data centers "need stable, affordable energy, and that's not achievable with just solar panels," and called for reopening nuclear plants Spain has scheduled for closure. On the United States, his own words were direct: "culturally, we're closer to the U.S., and that's the model we should focus on."
Three Positions, One Law
None of Solier's three stated positions were raised against CADA specifically in the sources reporting his appointment; the connection is what an EU cloud buyer has to draw for themselves.
| Question CADA has to answer | What CADA states as its aim | What Solier has said publicly |
|---|---|---|
| How much new compliance should EU cloud/AI rules carry | A single EU-wide sovereignty assessment framework | Fewer taxes, less red tape, real fiscal incentives |
| How should AI datacenter power be sourced | Not specified by the proposal | Reopen nuclear plants scheduled for closure |
| How should the EU treat US cloud/AI vendors | Reduce dependence on non-EU providers | Align closer with the US as the preferred model |
What an EU Cloud Buyer Should Watch
None of this means CADA will end up deregulated, or that Solier's committee report will match his personal interviews - a rapporteur's draft still has to survive committee votes, Council negotiation, and a plenary vote before it is law. But the member holding the pen on the amendments is on record wanting less obligation on providers, not more.
An EU-based buyer weighing a move to a sovereign cloud provider on the strength of CADA's stated goals should track the committee vote, not just the Commission's original proposal - the sovereignty framework a buyer eventually has to comply with is still being drafted, by someone who has said in his own words he would rather not draft new rules at all.
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