Cuts to police, fire, health, or prison services often become visible within an election cycle. Naval underinvestment can accumulate for decades, leaving a later government to face the crisis. Even under wartime pressure, Hawkins took from June 1916 to July 1919 to enter service, while Cavendish required from May 1916 to October 1918. Effingham, laid down in 1917, was not commissioned until July 1925. Warships depend on specialised yards and cannot be drawn from a standing factory output like fire engines or cars converted for police work. Buying them abroad also carries political costs in Britain, and modern submarines take still longer. Once capacity has declined, urgent demand cannot restore naval readiness quickly.
Chapter · 22:48-27:51
Why defence cuts reveal themselves decades later
Warship construction takes longer than an electoral cycle, separating decisions to cut capacity from the crisis that exposes their cost.