The Albanese government’s backflip over a decision to sell four historic Defence sites, including Victoria Barracks in Melbourne and Sydney, will have a negligible impact on the budget because the sites are heritage-listed and have limited appeal to developers, says federal Labor.
While the maintenance bill, which Defence Minister Richard Marles said amounted to “hundreds of millions of dollars a year”, will still be incurred given the properties will now stay in public ownership, the government will seek to offset the costs by commercialising the sites as tourist attractions and for other uses.
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