Clearly the times have changed
Neville,
The FOI mentioned in your post is by no means an isolated individual perpetuating a personal belief that ICUS "should not" be logged by someone with so little experience. This line of thought is reflected throughout GA but many of the larger regionals and airlines in fact rely on new F/O's logging ICUS.
Objectively the answer is simple: Does the pilot have a CPL (minimum)? Do they hold a COMMAND endorsement on type? (this perhaps should be the topic of discussion) A Command Instrument rating? Does the operator say they can do it? If the answer is yes to all of the above then legally the pilot can log ICUS.
As you mentioned, the good old days of hiring a pilot who already had an ATPL with thousands of hours as an F/O is well and truly gone. I think it is good time that somebody (this training mob) dispensed with this outdated way of thinking and actively looked for a way to gain hours in a non traditional way.
Watching,
I