AI helped the UK defy expectations – but will Britain’s resilience fizzle out?

<p>Despite John Healey’s defiance, the economy faces threats from a tech slowdown and energy bills this winter</p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/nov/12/uk-economy-grows-third-quarter-oil-price-ons-gdp">AI helps UK economy grow at fastest pace for more than two years</a></p></li></ul><p>The forecasters were clear when John Healey became chancellor in July: Britain’s resilience to the war in the Middle East would not last. The global economic headwinds were too strong, inflation was beginning to rise and growth would slow to a trickle.</p><p>Four months into the job, the economy is continuing to defy expectations after <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/nov/12/uk-economy-grows-third-quarter-oil-price-ons-gdp">growing by 0.7% in the third quarter</a> – the fastest expansion in two and a half years – leaving the UK as the second-fastest growing G7 economy this year.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/nov/12/ai-uk-economy-john-healey">Continue reading...</a>