Yes, Not a Boffin, you are quite right, the carriers in a benign air defence environment are a very good way of (slowly) deploying a respectable force and projecting power over long distance.
However, why are we spending such a large slice of our budget on a force incapable of defending itself in a hostile air environment? Do we intend in the future to continue to generate hate in the muslim world and home-grown terrorists by fighting conflicts such as the present day ones in Iraq and Afghanistan? Are we sure that the future is free from the same aggression we faced in the cold war days? Or are we relying on Uncle Sam to protect our carriers?
Personally, having spent years defending UK, I want to see a very capable air defence force in this country able to provide integrity of our own airspace before we start messing about around the world and pissing off the muslims even more. If we want to stop the drugs trade we could do worse than defend our own borders and if we want to exclude terrorists we could do worse than have tight border controls. Let's put our own home defences in order before wasting money projecting power.