Budget 2026: £85m for Blyth Catapult, Summit to Newcastle

The government will put more than £85 million into the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult’s facilities in Blyth, the Budget 2026 document published today says. The money is to turn the site into “a world-leading hub for testing the next generation of wind turbines”.

The same Budget confirms that the next International Investment Summit will be held in Newcastle in spring 2027, and sets aside £7 million for a feasibility study into a bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the North of England.

The North East Mayor, Kim McGuinness, who chairs The Great North partnership of Northern mayors, welcomed both announcements in a statement sent to the Post.

What the Budget says

The Blyth funding sits in the Budget’s list of science and innovation investments. It is described as “cementing the North East’s position at the vanguard of clean energy innovation”. The Catapult is one of the partners behind the Energy Central Institute now being built in Blyth.

On the summit, the document says only that “the next International Investment Summit will take place in spring 2027 in Newcastle”. The Mayor wrote to the Chancellor last year asking for the North to host it, according to The Great North.

The Olympic study is aimed at “a potential future bid to host the Olympics and Paralympics in the North of England during the 2040s”. The Budget says it will report in 2029 and will also look at how a Games “could best deliver transformational regeneration”.

There is also up to £800,000 for the Northern 500, a growth network for mid-sized Northern businesses led by The Great North, to set up a new council and steering group. With the Olympic study, that makes up a Northern Growth Strategy package of up to £7.8 million.

What the Mayor said

The Great North said the summit follows its recent trade mission to India and will help to “strengthen international partnerships, attract visitors and investment, and create jobs across the North”.

Ms McGuinness said: “This is a confident, outward-looking North of England, with our mayors leading the way on the world stage. We believe in our people, our businesses and our communities, and together we are taking that belief to the world.

“We made the case for bringing the UK Investment Summit to the North because we know what we have to offer. These plans show what we can achieve when we come together, backed by a Government that understands our strengths and is investing in our potential.”

On India, she said: “We took a shared Northern offer to one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Bringing global investors here is the next opportunity to turn those international relationships into jobs, investment and lasting prosperity for our people, while driving growth for the whole of UK plc.”

On the Games: “A Great North Olympics and Paralympics would take that ambition even further. I’m delighted the Government is backing the next stage with £7 million to explore how we could deliver a Games that welcomes the world to the North and puts our communities at its heart.

“From our cities and towns to our coastlines and countryside, we have so much to share. This is our opportunity to show the world what makes the North special, attract more international visitors and build relationships that will benefit our communities for generations to come.”

What it means for you

Nothing changes for households yet. The Blyth money is the most concrete local item: a named sum for a named site in the county, aimed at testing the next generation of wind turbines. The Budget does not give a start date or say how many jobs it will support.

The investment summit is a one-off event in Newcastle next spring. Whether any of the deals signed there land in Northumberland will not be known until then.

The Olympics are much further off. The £7 million pays for a study, not a bid, and the study does not report until 2029. No venues have been named.

For other changes in the Budget, the full Budget 2026 document is on GOV.UK.