Veterans say the government’s planned sell-off of more than 60 defence properties will take at least a decade and cost billions, urging Labor not to repeat the mistakes of previous divestment drives.
The RSL, the federal opposition and local MPs expressed doubts about the plan announced on Wednesday, set to raise as much as $1.8bn from the sale of properties including training sites, bases, warehouses and disused land, all deemed to offer no strategic value.
Among sites set to be sold are the historic Victoria Barracks in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane as well as prime sites on Sydney Harbour and a major munitions site at Maribyrnong, in Melbourne’s west.
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A multi-year review recommended 68 sites be sold, including HMAS Penguin in Sydney’s Mosman, Spectacle Island on Sydney Harbour and RAAF Williams at Melbourne’s Point Cook.
The defence minister, Richard Marles, said all funds from the sale of about $3bn in property holdings would be returned to defence, insisting the government had a “laser focus” on value for money.
New housing is not a priority for sale process, though Labor expects to carefully consider appropriate use once each site has been transferred to the department of finance.
The RSL national president, Peter Tinley, said the organisation supported modernising defence infrastructure but careful consideration was needed, including on the sale of heritage sites.
He pointed to previous asset sales in Sydney’s North Head and Portsea in Victoria as failed processes.
“The Defence Strategic Review made clear we need to reorient toward our northern approaches,” Tinley said. “But these aren’t empty paddocks on a spreadsheet.
“Some of these sales will take a decade and cost a fortune in remediation. The $1.8bn/$3b headline figure may look very different when the final accounting is done.”
The shadow defence minister, Angus Taylor, accused the government of mounting a “fire sale” and called for careful scrutiny of each location.
“Australia is facing the most dangerous strategic environment in generations,” he said.
“We must not sell off assets that directly support the recruitment, training and retention of ADF personnel just to cover up Labor’s failures on housing.”
The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns, called for heritage to be protected at Sydney’s Victoria Barracks, established in 1840 and originally occupied by the British army.
“The heritage value of Victoria barracks is very important, not just to those that care about culturally significant buildings but also for the veterans and the members of the armed forces that have gone through the barracks over a long period of time.
“I hope they do it sensitively. We’ll have a closer look at the proposed changes and see how it works.”
The Greens’ defence spokesperson, David Shoebridge, said the 13-hectare site must be used for social and affordable housing.
“Done right these sites could deliver literally thousands of homes, protect heritage and provide beautiful and much-needed public parklands,” he said.
“Labor selling this land without any regard to the desperate need for public housing and the strong community support for the built heritage and green open space is a three-way betrayal”.
Sydney councillor Zann Maxwell called for imagination, care and a clear public vision for the site.
“Across Australia and around the world, former military sites have been transformed into great civic places,” he said. “With the right stewardship, Victoria Barracks could become Sydney’s next great public precinct.
“The government has made the right call. This is 15 hectares of extraordinary land locked away in the middle of a dense global city at a time when Sydney desperately needs public space, cultural venues and housing solutions that respect heritage.”
