Thanks for your comments BSD.
I completely agree that the industry, as well as in the military, will select the 'stand out characters' for it's top slots. My point was that UKPPLC is still young, with ample chance to develop. WWW seemed to be adopting a 'don't even bother' attitude to someone who had a genuine concern.
I would certainly offer the advice of 'be the best you can be' before applying, and a I agree that in this day and age a degree would help. However, it is not the be all and end all; UKPPLC is in a very fortunate position in terms of financial support, and seems to have decided on his career path. In his shoes, I think I would be doing the same. Who knows, he may already stand out; something you cannot really tell from just a single post on a thread.