Politicians take control of the London Naval Treaty

The London Naval Treaty was far more politically controlled than the Washington settlement. Ramsay MacDonald and Herbert Hoover discussed the foundations informally, without stenographers or naval experts, while officials issued an intentionally ambiguous public statement. A First Sea Lord with David Beatty's political clout could have made this exclusion dangerous for Labour's fragile parliamentary position. The conference also depended on a chain of participation: Washington needed Britain, Britain insisted on France and Japan, and France insisted on Italy. The criticism of this process concerns the absence of professional advice about geography, fleet missions, and the practical meaning of parity. Political equality between the fleets did not settle what work each navy needed to perform.