Who was responsible for Invergordon's communication failure?

Politicians controlled the budget and chose the pay reductions, while naval leaders controlled how the decision was communicated to sailors. First Sea Lord Sir Frederick Field and Second Sea Lord Fuller knew the cuts were coming and still failed to prepare the fleet. Tomkinson's temporary position raises a question about whether the Admiralty would have listened more carefully to the absent full admiral, Sir Michael Hodges. That possible effect of rank remains an interpretation rather than a demonstrated reason for dismissing the warnings. Clearer communication might have prevented the mutiny, which would also have left naval leaders having to implement the cuts. The possibility that the communication failure was deliberate is raised as a suspicion that cannot be proved. It remains separate from the firm criticism that senior naval officers were responsible for explaining the decision.