Key facts
- Healey said critical data centres would get needed grid connections and could build on-site generation while they wait.
- Healey said data centres must meet tests on local investment, local jobs and protection of local water supplies.
- Healey said the Budget added half a billion pounds for AI safety and security and 140 million pounds for a sovereign AI unit.
- Healey announced 18 million pounds for advanced chip design led by Edinburgh University.
Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey said in his Budget speech on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, that he was launching a British data centre covenant, according to a report by The Business Investor. The primary source for this record could not be retrieved.
Healey said data centres would have to meet strict tests to invest in local communities, create local jobs and protect local water supplies. In return, he said, critical data centres would get the grid connections they need and, where necessary, would be allowed to build on-site generation while they wait.
Healey said the Budget backed AI safety and security with an extra half a billion pounds and a sovereign AI unit with another 140 million pounds. He also announced 18 million pounds for advanced chip design led by Edinburgh University and 6 million pounds for the Glasgow Scottish Event Campus, and said devolved governments would receive equivalent funding.
Planning, environmental controls and water management for new data centre developments remain devolved responsibilities in Scotland, the report said. David Hill, a partner at Browne Jacobson, said an independent review into AI in the NHS needed emphasis on rigour as much as speed.