Sydney's historic Victoria Barracks sale moves ahead: about 500 personnel to move out by Christmas, most to Randwick

Sydney · Military · Oct. 31, 2026 · The sale of Sydney's historic Victoria Barracks in Paddington is moving ahead. Defence sources told ABC News that personnel are already packing their belongings, with the site expected to be completely vacated by Christmas. The base is one of 67 underused or vacant defence properties the federal government has earmarked for sale.

Victoria Barracks was established in 1840 and its main complex completed in 1848. The roughly 13-hectare site, built largely from local sandstone, reportedly holds 12 entries on the Commonwealth Heritage List. About 500 people are currently based there, including army commands and support units. Under the relocation plan, most will move to Randwick Barracks, while others will be temporarily housed at Defence Plaza Sydney, an office tower in the central business district.

The government's case

Defence Minister Richard Marles said maintaining the barracks as a defence facility would cost A$200 million over the next decade, while selling all 67 properties could raise up to A$3 billion. In an ABC Sydney Breakfast interview on Oct. 27, he said the functions carried out at Victoria Barracks could easily be performed elsewhere, that east-coast counter-terrorism capability sits at Holsworthy Barracks rather than Victoria Barracks, and that every building on the site would be protected even if sold.

Opposition

The sale has drawn cross-party criticism: former prime ministers Paul Keating and John Howard, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns and Australian Greens leader David Shoebridge have all criticised it, while retired Colonel Graham Flitton, chairman of the New South Wales Army Museum Foundation, called the decision 'incomprehensible'. Thousands rallied in Sydney on Oct. 25 calling for the sale to be scrapped.

The future location of the New South Wales Army Museum, housed at the barracks, has not yet been determined. The sale program stems from a 2022–2023 defence estate audit and was announced in February this year; a Senate inquiry is examining the divestments, with its final report due on Feb. 25, 2027, according to reports.

Compiled from ABC News, Australian Associated Press (AAP) and the Defence Minister's public interview; the 'packing boxes' detail comes from defence sources cited by ABC.