A TREASURY Northern campus could be built near Darlington, the Northern Echo understands.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced plans to relocate part of the Treasury to the North in the budget in March.

The Northern Echo understands that plans are being made to build the campus at Teesside Airport, on the outskirts of Darlington.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “I have had numerous conversations with Government ministers about moving Government departments to the North, and I have made it crystal clear that these jobs should come to Teesside."

In March, Mr Sunak, MP for Richmond, said he wanted a fifth of Treasury workers to move to a Northern campus.

It is understood the confidential designs for a new building at the airport ­­– understood to include a moat – have been submitted to Number 10 for consideration.

It had been expected a decision on the Northern campus would be made in the now-scrapped autumn budget.

A Treasury spokesperson said “no decision” had been made on its location.

They said: “We will ensure that our economic recovery from Covid-19 benefits every part of the country as we level up opportunities for all.

“The Chancellor announced at the Budget that we will establish a new campus in the North of England focused on economic decision making, and further details will be provided in due course.”

Peter Gibson, the Conservative MP for Darlington, called for the Government to put its "money where its mouth is".

He said: “I, along with other Tees Valley MP, have been working hard in conjunction with Ben Houchen in order to keep pressing the case for bringing jobs to the Tees Valley.

“If they come to the Tees Valley it is going to benefit Darlington, Sedgefield, Stockton North and South, Middlesbrough, Redcar because we are a relatively small economy.

"The delivery of government jobs will be transformational for our area.

“The levelling up agenda and delivering investment and jobs to our area is no better demonstrated than by putting the government’s money where its mouth is.”

Labour MP Alex Cunningham, whose Stockton North constituency also borders the airport, said: “We saw the Tory government axe hundreds of civil service jobs in the North-East in tax, public lending rights and education since 2010 many of them on Teesside so I’d very much welcome that policy being reversed.

“We desperately need the jobs after losing an extra 12,500 across the Tees Valley in recent months and very few new ones created.

“I only hope that on this occasion there will be foundation to the speculation and the government actually delivers something for us.”

Sedgefield MP Paul Howell, whose constituency also borders the airport, said: “If it happens with any department it needs to include senior civil servants.

“We went decision makers up here is we can get them.”

Councillor Heather Scott, leader of Darlington Borough Council, said she would welcome the move and said the airport was an “ideal” location.

Mr Houchen said bringing the Treasury to Teesside would "educate" officials about the needs of people across the UK.

He added: “A relocation to Teesside will provide a level of education to officials about the true needs of people across the UK – many of who voted Conservative for the first time in 2019.

“There is no clearer way for the Government to show they are serious about the levelling up agenda than moving Government out of London to Teesside. We see it all too often that the North, to many, means Manchester. Nobody would believe the Government was making a real attempt at levelling up if it was to just simply move Departments from the biggest city in England to the second biggest city in England.

“In 2019 voters in Teesside placed their faith in this Government on the promise that investment would finally be coming their way. For Boris Johnson’s Conservatives to be true to that promise, he needs to back this flagship project that would be truly transformational for the Red Wall seats that he won at the last election, making a real difference to the lives of ordinary people in my region and changing national politics for generations to come."

In August, Middlesbrough mayor Andy Preston called for the campus to be built in central Middlesbrough – saying a wrong decision would be “the biggest wasted opportunity Teesside has ever seen” and a move to the town would put right “decades of neglect”.

Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald has also previously said the town would be the “ideal location”.