I don't think the statistics bare that out. There are also examples like the F-14 that completely throw a wrench in such claims.
The F-14 is proof that the F-16 is better off with 1 good engine than the Tomcat was with 2 poor engines.
Britain was one of the main contributors to the JSF program and there is no alternative STOVL to replace the Harrier in terms of choosing (remembering that they retired the harrier over a decade ago)
The UK is screwed in that they don't fund their defense, sorry "defence", to the amount that they should, and this is no surprise as their entire country seems to be on the ropes currently not just their military, navy, or Air Arm.
The UK is the country that managed to lose an F-35 because they didn't pull off an intake cover before flight, and the subsequent investigation basically found that the crews were exhausted and overworked and missed the obvious because once again, the UK is on a constantly shrinking and downward trajectory.