WEBF,
"the reason that carrier based aviation has increased in importance (not for the UK) in recent years is because of the end of the Cold War and the move towards expeditionary and littoral operations"
This would be true if the Admirals made the decisions about what to buy and what to take.
However, in the real world, where the SHAR was too expensive to waste time or money on any longer; and where perception politics are more important than reality; then symbols are more important than logic and planning.
Cheers
BHR