Chancellor John Healey to spend on AI and chips in upcoming Budget

politicsOct 26, 202616486

Chancellor John Healey pledged to use his debut budget to commit hundreds of millions of pounds to a “distinctively British” approach to artificial intelligence, saying the government will make the biggest ever investment to guard against cyber risks and the disruptive potential of the technology. Healey said the budget will provide fresh funding for Britain’s AI Security Institute and other critical institutions and allocate public money to support using AI for public benefit. He described AI as transformative for “every firm, community, hospital, school and every aspect of our economy” while stressing the need to defend workers and national interest. The announcement comes three months into Andy Burnham’s premiership and against a volatile global backdrop, with the recent Middle East war pushing oil above $117 a barrel and straining public finances. Official figures cited in the article say AI investment helped the UK outperform gloomy forecasts, delivering the strongest G7 growth in the first half of the year. The chancellor framed the measures as central to Labour’s plan for growth and as part of a package to give households and businesses “breathing space” amid rising energy costs. The article also notes recent tech fallout, with websites worldwide going dark after a serious vulnerability emerged in a widely used programming language, underscoring Healey’s security rationale.

Nick Harkaway

@nickharkaway.com

Asking for a few friends: does a 'distinctly British' approach to AI include paying for the use of our work? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

300Yesterday

Nick Harkaway37

I mean obviously hyperscale brigandage is a British tradition, but I don't think that's what he intended to invoke.

Gav13

Queuing. It will have a queue.

Nick B 🔶7

'distinctly British' AI, when asked to translate anything into a foreign language, will just repeat it in English only louder.

Dan Kaszeta FRHistS6

Nah, it just advises people to make tea in a microwave

Mo3

The distinctly British approach on display here is a government gurgling vague platitudes in a chokehold from US industry.

Ciarán Bradley3

*Lord Elgin has entered the chat*

Quoting this

Greg Jenner (Historian)59

British intelligence should be James Bond in an underwater car, not a sycophantic chatbot

Joel Morris44

Of course the colonial plunder of resources belonging to other people without paying is “distinctly British”.

Prof Nisreen Alwan13

There’s no such thing as ‘distinctly British’ or distinctly any country when it comes to AI. This talk is for the birds and tells me these guys still don’t get it. If there’s no unified global regulatory enforceable approach to genAI we’re all doomed.

A’ine Evergreen 🏳️‍⚧️8

I assume it means barging in where its not wanted, ruining the lives of everyone it effects, and stealing everythi— Oh hey, Ai was ALREADY distinctly historically British, huh… 😅

Anthony Ryan4

Translation: Can’t raise taxes. Can’t lower taxes. Do some meaningless headline grabbing shit instead.

The Duggle, from C-South2

We’re going to be paying billions to NVIDIA for GPUs in a distinctly British way (the currency will be pounds)

Peter Stefanovic

@peterstefanovic.bsky.social

Poorest pensioners set to be shielded from income tax in budget Chancellor John Healey is expected to announce a 3.9 per cent rise to the full state pension while protecting those on lower incomes from income tax www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

803h ago

Andrew5

Keep it simple. Make the Personal Allowance equal to the basic State Pension. Then all the poor get something.

mstkindeed.bsky.social1

Should just tax the really rich pensioners. Those in the middle will be hit hard.

patthepublican2

@patthepublican2.bsky.social

OH yes because this is exactly what we need We have more food banks than ever before, a crumbling NHS, a decaying infrastructure, but our fuckwit Govt says we need this Chancellor says government to commit hundreds of millions to develop ‘distinctively British’ approach to AI Makes my piss boil.

19Yesterday

Dennis5

They don't care about people. Labour have excelled themselves as the worst political party in my opinion.

Carpe Derpum4

A disastrous idea guaranteed to fail and cost a fortune to return to square one. Pretty much every industry is learning this the hard way. It's like artificial foods: first bite is pretty good, and then it gets worse and worse until finally the full horror is revealed (cancer) and it's made illegal.

Tacoma Mike3

A distinctly British approach to AI: "Gadzooks, you are correct. I should indeed not have started a nuclear war when you asked me how to kill the mouse hiding behind the fridge. Please accept my most sincere apologies. And what else can I do you for, me old china, in what remains of the day?

Sam Smith3

A definitive British approach would be to do without it, or at the very least determine first what use it could be to the British people. While also assessing what danger it could prove to British citizens. Not a load of New Labour claptrap.

Haud Ma Chips 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿1

When you’ve got the BBC on a leash, who needs AI?

Andrew Sissons

@acjsissons.bsky.social

Catching up with this @katie0martin.ft.com piece on the Budget, which is very good as ever. But I’m still worried that everyone (markets and government) is underplaying the problems energy bills are going to cause in January

"Probably a non-event", says UBS. "Quite dull, frankly", says ING. "Low key", says Goldman Sachs. You get the idea. And yet, UK government bond investors, in particular, will be glued to their screens on Wednesday.
The carefully crafted lack of excitement from John Healey is a neat piece of political choreography that plugs precisely into what financial market participants want to hear. If the new-ish chancellor manages to match up his actions with his steady-as-he-goes image, he may well hitch himself on to a wave of luck - that rarest and most valuable of commodities in
global finance.

14Yesterday

Andrew Sissons5

Household gas bills are up about a third since April, and are set to rise at least another third in the January price cap. Electricity bills less so, but still a fair bit. By my very rough maths, that could add another 1% or so to CPI inflation in Jan - very bad for govt borrowing costs!

Dave1

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure the Labour 2024 manifesto was not "steady as she goes", it was the opposite of that: change. Honestly, just shaking my head in disbelief at this point.

Nolan Principles Matter. End the #GazaGenocide💔💙

@philildo.bsky.social

This is really going to come back + bite Healey on the bum: “AI will transform daily life: every firm, community, hospital, school + every aspect of our economy can benefit.” Where the feck does he think those who are dumped on the slag heap of #AI slop are going to get their income to pay tax on

7Yesterday

Lynne #TaxTheRich #WelfareNotWarfare. Eco-Socialist. Pro-🇵🇸

@bebsdotteragain.bsky.social

Hands up who trusts, AI firms, this government or John Healey?? news.sky.com/story/uk-ple...

5Yesterday

lbg1876.bsky.social3

They're taking the piss. Who knows whether there's a credible threat or not, to anything? We're supposed to believe everything they say and assume they're acting in our best interests. But that's a helluva assumption, they're more likely to be acting in the interests of their corporate sponsors.

GroguForceWithin2

This is madness. We do not need AI in the first place for every day activities. Government should restrict the to defence if needed and nothing more. Even the benefit in defence is doubtful. Iran Fokked USA‘s ‘most powerful, sophisticated’ war machine with cheap equipment. America - loss in billions

AnthonyF2721

It seems that all of talk radio today is telling us to get ready for disaster. This has to be the government paving the way to spending billions with their mates in the arms industries.

Jill Rutter

@jillongovt.bsky.social

Glad that John Healey has continued Rachel Reeves avoidance of pointless Sunday morning pre-budget round.. (at least he's not on Sky - hope also not on BBC). We discussed with @benzaranko.bsky.social On latest @instituteforgovernment.org.uk podcast www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/podcast/insi...

11Yesterday

Chris Guiton

@chrisguiton.bsky.social

I'm wondering if it's possible to use AI to abolish John Healey. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

9Yesterday

Sylvia2

Tbf we could exchange most of the HoC with ChatGPT and we wouldn’t notice the difference. In fact, there might be slightly more Intelligence

OldeHippi🦋1

Would that were possible with the mass of idiots flooding world governments currently!! #EraofStupid

The Glass is Empty1

There are “other powers” using AI to keep him in place.

bee 'hyphen' moh1

"Britain's security" is an interesting way of spelling "Google's profits"

B heard media 💚🇵🇸

@bheardmedia.bsky.social

Major charities including Shelter, Crisis & Trussell have sent a letter to Chancellor John Healey calling for him to bring Housing benefit back in line with private rents. "Unfreezing LHA would also give millions of low-income private renters some much needed breathing space.

41h ago

Lee Hurley

@hleehurley.com

..."John Healey is expected to confirm on Wednesday that the full state pension will rise by £489 to £13,036, equivalent to 3.9 per cent." Times front page

102h ago

frapacioli.bsky.social

@frapacioli.bsky.social

The level of discussion of the UK government’s finances on the BBC is risible. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

5Yesterday

John Bloor Printmaker

@johnbloorprint.bsky.social

How exactly is harnessing the power of AI going to bolster my security, as a self employed printmaker, John Healey? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026... #printmaker #printmaking

5Yesterday

Alexander Brown

@alexofbrown.bsky.social

EXC: The Chancellor John Healey is set to announce a £1billion boost to council housing which can deliver up to 10,000 homes in the Budget. The government also plans to help more councils borrow for housebuilding by extending preferential rates. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

4Yesterday

Tony Tagliatelle

@sammyspaghetti.bsky.social

It was AI that crippled internet services across the world this week. John Healey is working for at least one Bond villain.

5Yesterday

Screamliner Ontario

@mostlyharmless.northsky.social

John Healey is a neoliberal ****. (Also, I'm sick of politicians jumping on the fucking AI bandwagon. It's lazy, it's probably corrupt, and I want elected representatives to engage with human problems on a human level. Please and thank you).

5Yesterday

3 sources

theguardian.comJohn Healey pledges to use budget to harness power of AI to bolster Britain’s security jacobbarclayevans.comIs John Healey a 'placeholder' Chancellor for Andy Burnham?dailyrecord.co.ukScottish Labour calls for John Healey to hike taxes on UK's biggest banks

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Chancellor John Healey to spend on AI and chips in upcoming Budget

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