In a leaked letter to home secretary Theresa May, five US web giants have warned that they will not cooperate with the proposed Communications Data Bill, widely known as the "snooper's charter".
In the letter, dated 18 April, which was leaked to the Guardian, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo and Twitter take issue with the proposals, which would require overseas internet firms to store data on UK users for up to 12 months.
They go on to say that the proposed £1.8bn plan would jeopardise Britain's prominent position as a promoter of freedom of expression and leader in digital innovation, arguing that were every jurisdiction to operate separate rules on the way that internet companies collect and store information, the open, global nature of the internet would be under threat.
"We do not want there to be any doubt about the strength of our concerns in respect of the idea that the UK government would seek to impose an order on a company in respect of services which are offered by service providers outside the UK," it says, according to the Guardian.
"The internet is still a relatively young technology. It brings enormous benefits to citizens everywhere and is a great force for economic and social development. The UK has rightly positioned itself as a leading digital nation.
"There are risks in legislating too early in this fast-moving area that can be as significant as the risks of legislating too late."
As an alternative to the 'snooper's charter', the five companies suggest a new bilateral agreement between the UK and US, with enhanced arrangements between web firms and the security services.
Having been left out of the Queen's Speech on the insistence of the Liberal Democrats, the communications data project is being promoted again by some ministers, including May and defence secretary Philip Hammond, following the murder by extremists of soldier Lee Rigby in Woolwich last week. However, without the voluntary cooperation of international web companies such as the signatories of this letter, it would stand little chance of success.
Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said: "The industry ... upon whose cooperation we rely on to go after the bad people, just said it wasn't workable in its present form. They said no other country in the world has done this, no other democracy in the world has done this. It would set a sort of dangerous precedent and might then be followed by much less liberal and law-abiding regimes."
