Beatty and Madden had contingency plans to seize the interned ships if a scuttling attempt began. Roger Keyes and Leveson went further by recommending that the Royal Navy take the vessels and ground them at Nigg before Germany could act. British leaders rejected that course as impolitic and needlessly distrustful, preserving the appearance that internment would continue under the agreed terms. Meanwhile, repeated repatriations left Reuter with a smaller body of reliable men, so diplomatic restraint unintentionally improved his ability to organize the scuttling.
Notable Point · 6:33-7:42
Why Britain did not seize the fleet first
British commanders had plans to take or ground the German ships, but concern about appearing distrustful kept the contingency from becoming a pre-emptive seizure.