Why Britain traded capital-ship work for escorts

What did Britain hope to gain by slowing capital-ship construction to build more escorts?

It wanted more escorts for an expected repeat of the First World War, a rational choice against Germany alone but inadequate for a wider three-power war.

The choice prepared Britain for what looked like another First World War struggle against Germany. More escorts directly answered the expected submarine and convoy threat. Against Germany alone, existing capital ships appeared sufficient for the likely surface war. The calculation became dangerous when Italy and Japan added two major fleets to the conflict.