I can tell you that over in the UK I had my class 1 without ever having done a class 2. I have now done a rather suprisingly rigorous class 2 out here in New Zealand though, but that was after having done my class one and I'm still not entirely sure why we have to do it... did I hear you whisper "money making scam"?
So that's how it is in the UK - I would suggest taking it up with the CAA to get the official line. It would seem to me that his take on the Class 2 first is incorrect, because that still wouldn't allow you to apply for a professional licence... It all sounds rather odd to me.
A lot of practitioners are losing faith in the BMI chart because of enormous irregularities in its accuracy.
Tell me about it - the cheeky computer classed me as overweight (25.2), much to the amusement of the doctor, as I am a bit of a gym monkey. The system is incapable of differentiating between different builds and muscle mass vs bodyfat. It would seem wiser to me to start using a bodyfat percentage analysis (be it fancy whizzy electrical resistance or good old fashioned calipers)...