Even back in the 80's we were saying that after years of Salami slicing, if there was another major cut in funding, the RAF would have to lose a Role. With the end of the Cold War and the Soviet submarine threat it was obvious that the maritime role would be the one to go.
I’m not sure I follow that argument. Why in that same period (entire 90s and 00s) did the RAF fight to retain MR2 and then upgrade to MRA4. And then fight for Billions over the original budget when costs spiraled. And politicians of both main parties agreed. The capability was lost because of something that emerged far more recently.