An expanded interwar sloop fleet had three useful roles: convoy escort, minesweeping, and peacetime presence. These ships were not substitutes for the cruisers, destroyers, and capital ships needed in a fleet action against Italy or Japan. That made a large programme difficult to justify when Germany was only one of three principal war possibilities. Building more sloops also required extra money and crews that could not be used elsewhere. Justifying the programme required an explicit political decision to fund insurance against a particular kind of Atlantic war.
Notable Point · 57:13-59:42
The three jobs that justified an interwar sloop fleet
Convoy escort, minesweeping, and overseas presence could justify more sloops, even though the ships added little to a battle fleet facing Italy or Japan.