While Cub sailed to Africa in late 1941 Britain was suffering its worst defeats of the war. When he started his return journey the tide had turned. Montgomery's forces had defeated Rommel at the second Battle of El Alamein in November 1943; the news of this major victory provoked Churchill's famous declaration that, at least, this might be “the end of the beginning”. The Prime Minister was still preoccupied with the war effort, but others made planning for peace their priority. The appearance of the Beveridge Report on 1 December, while the country was still celebrating Montgomery's victory, was an unfortunate coincidence for the Conservative Party which was caught off-balance by an overwhelming public welcome. This is not to say that the party had ignored the future entirely; as early as the summer of 1940 the idea was floated of a committee with the limited brief of “collating and presenting to the Prime Minister the views of the Conservative and Unionist Party on post-war problems”. By July 1941, when the Post-War Problems Central Committee started its work, Rab Butler had been selected as its chairman.

Butler had kept in regular touch with Cub after the latter's departure for Africa. Cub believed that after Jock's death Rab began to look on him as a surrogate younger brother, but even before the tragedy his friend had written very warmly of future collaboration. In August 1942, for example, he sent to Cub a brief summary of work which had already been done by sub-committees on postwar problems, on youth and education.