 In November 1922 Blamey embarked for London to be the Australian representative on the Imperial General Staff . He reported that the " conception of an Imperial General Staff ... was absolutely dead " . The British Army saw little use in the concept of a combined staff which could coordinate the defence of the British Empire . He became involved with the development of the Singapore strategy , and he briefed Prime Minister Stanley Bruce on it for the 1923 Imperial Conference , at which it was formally adopted . Even in 1923 , though , Blamey was sceptical about the strategy . 
