People can blame whom they like but from personal experience Pay as you starve, which as a SNCO I fought vehemently against, was introduced with little if any opposition.
Blame the people who used the messes at the time, the stampede from them to get it introduced, was frankly ridiculous. All they saw was a pound sign.
Shift workers missing 2 or 3 meals a week in their mess was a major factor in people's thinking.
It was always going to end in tears and I was laughed at for saying so at the time.