I am sure these are a naïve questions, but I am not very familiar with the NPPL, however:
1) Does this mean that we will also lose the NPPL?
2) If not, what obstacles are there in attaching an IMC rating to it?
3) Could the NPPL be extended to include more powerful aircraft so that anyone flying within the UK on a PPL IMC could side-step EASA?
The average PPL/IMC wants to fly his/her PA28 etc safely, in IMC, outside of class A airspace. An extended NPPL/IMC would serve the vast majority, leaving the remainder (as now) who want to fly internationally or in airways to follow the route to an IR.
Until (or unless) the more accessible IR arrives, this would be a neat solution.
As I say, I am sure I am just being naïve in thinking this could be possible, but when JAR-FCL was introduced I would never have guessed we could have an NPPL, so why not extend it?