The 'We Want Eight' episode shows the strength of the Royal Navy's prewar political machine. The Admiralty wanted six ships and the Treasury preferred four, but a conditional compromise quickly produced eight once the stated trigger was met. Plans for the Queen Elizabeth and R classes likewise grew from nine ships to fourteen, showing that the government could be induced to fund major naval expansion. That total includes the projected Agincourt, whose nominal place in the 15-inch generation is qualified by the interpretation that she was intended to carry 18-inch guns. The argument for political restraint over Tiger Cubs therefore rests on whether another cruiser class was worth spending that political capital.
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The 'We Want Eight' compromise shows Admiralty leverage
The dreadnought building campaign demonstrates why politics, rather than money or yards alone, best explains the absence of a Tiger Cub order.