cavortingcheetah,
I have to strongly disagree with you...
I did my CPL (Frozen ATPL) course in the UK and dispite being from Africa, at no time was I handed an easier, "wink wink nudge nudge" type exam!!!!
I worked my a**e off for those subjects and all the "local" boys sat in the same room as me writing the same exams.
The only thing that we did see/experience is the fact that various countries had their students merely "sit off" the time at the UK schools.
By that I mean that these guys were sent there for X months exactly, and regardless of their exam pass rate or final outcome of the course, they would return home to get their local country licenses only. AT NO TIME did the UK CAA issue anyone a less qualified/dont fly in UK airspace license.
Believe me, the UK CAA have never made it easy for me to do anything. When I eventually had the hours to "unfreeze" the ATPL, they wanted copies of airline AOC's, letters from MD's and pretty much anything else they could think of.
The school I went to had some of the oldest UK instructors in the business, and I never heard any of them mention any lesser licenses for foreigners.