Could the Hawker Siddeley P.139B have worked?

Could the Hawker Siddeley P.139B have worked, or was it doomed to cancellation?

It could have worked technically, but only if the government was prepared to fund its development.

The Hawker Siddeley P.139B was not inevitably doomed by engineering and could probably have been made to work. The decisive uncertainty was whether the government was prepared to invest enough money in development. Technical feasibility alone could not give the procurement programme enough institutional commitment to reach service.