New Zealand could contribute the purchase money without having the organization to crew and sustain a capital ship independently. The Royal Navy would supply much of the personnel, and the additional couple of hundred people for a Lion are judged manageable against its prewar manpower resources. The new 13.5-inch guns and shells would require their own support arrangements, despite the Royal Navy having used an older gun of that calibre. Australia and New Zealand were already investing in infrastructure for the ships, so the choice concerned which system to support. The illustrative estimate adds about 100,000 pounds for the ship and 150,000 pounds for infrastructure to an existing commitment of roughly three million pounds. These are approximate comparisons, and the infrastructure total is explicitly disputed because government accounts allocate the spending differently.
Notable Point · 14:47-18:28
The crew and infrastructure bill for a Dominion Lion
A Lion would need more crew and different ammunition support, but the extra expense sits within an infrastructure program the Dominions already had to fund.