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While Fraser was prepared to recognize the British paper as 'a valuable contribution', Berendsen was said to be highly critical of the British proposals.45 A protest ensued forcing the FO to convene a special meeting at which it was agreed that the British leader would withdraw his paper. The alternatives of 'the supreme body versus general mob' would be reconsidered by the professional Whitehall bureaucrats who would put the argument in a more balanced way to produce a revised version that would be amenable to all of the Dominions. The DO was upset at this outcome, believing the FO to have adopted an 'unfortunate' approach; Machtig thought that the contents of the revised paper were quite different from what had been agreed at the Conference. The DO believed that it was entirely clear that the Dominions had rejected both of Churchill's key suggestions, the unitary representation of the British Commonwealth and the idea that regional organizations would act as representatives on any future World Council.46 Yet the new document still supported Churchill's point of 'capital importance', and that there should be some European regional machine.47 The re-draft was savaged when it was put before the Dominion diplomats who had been left behind in London to discuss such matters, the allegation being that it contained ideas which had not been approved at the full conference. The proposal that Britain alone might represent all of the Dominions on any future World Council was particularly abhorrent to the overseas representatives.

For each of the Dominion leaders, their visit to London had a different effect. The FO's summary had noted that Curtin in particular had conducted himself in a praiseworthy fashion, his visit having been remarkably successful in demonstrating his ability to stand out among his fellow prime ministers. He had 'hit it off' well with the British leader and admitted his 'boundless' admiration for the British war effort. Fraser also, despite some doubts about the conduct of the war in the Mediterranean and Italy, was assuaged by Churchill's exposition and left in a positive frame of mind. It was noted that Mackenzie King had proven as reluctant as had been expected to commit Canada to specific Commonwealth proposals. He had, however, remained throughout 'most helpful, friendly and enthusiastic' and it was believed that he had returned home well satisfied. Smuts was 'as always a source of strength and inspiration'. The South African had commented in his closing address to the Conference that while it had not been a formal meeting, what had been achieved was successful and 'amazing' under the conditions prevailing in an atmosphere and spirit unlike any he had experienced at previous gatherings. As another writer put it, it had not been expected that Curtin would be such a success; aside from Smuts, 'an international statesman of the Churchill-Roosevelt calibre', his performance was judged to have placed him 'head and shoulders above the other PMs'.48

Some of the doubts about what to expect had been based on the warnings received by the DO beforehand that the Australian leader had been in 'a far from cheerful mood' about the Conference. Indeed, in February 1944, a visiting DO official returned from Canberra with the news that Curtin was not interested in international affairs and would likely still refuse any invitation to visit London. According to Cross, he was apparently apprehensive about the prospect of meeting with Churchill and uncertain about how he would compare to the other Dominion leaders, both in terms of his statesmanship and his stature. He returned home full of self-assurance, feeling that he was 'in every sense one of the brotherhood'. He was also particularly pleased to have formed a strong friendship with the British leader and extolled the degree to which it was vital for the Commonwealth and the Empire that he remained in power for the duration of the war. He felt 'the hatchet had been buried' over 1942 and the high commissioner believed that Australian cooperation would in future be 'more sympathetic'