The comment may be harsh to the individual but it reflects the reality of GA representation on committees tasked with drafting the regs. The delegate will vote as he is told by the organisation he represents; sod the rest.
Popham is an unusual case. It has an excellent catchment area in a high net worth part of the country. And PPL instruction is easily done from there by flying to a licensed airfield first, and pretending the lesson starts there.
Popham got set up c. 1978 but it is about the last significant GA base that got planning permission from scratch in the UK. I would estimate the budget just for the planning application at best part of £100,000 in today's money. Then you have to build the runway - a few hundred k minimum.
Personally I don't care for the commercial route at all, but I do think of other pilots and IMHO without the extra activity GA would shrink to the freehold farm strips.
If one could set up GA airfields like Popham in open countryside, the whole picture would change beyond recognition. And if GPS approaches were authorised without ATC that would complete the picture - IFR capability with near zero cost to the airfield (decent runway lights perhaps). But this is dreaming.
If I had my own strip I would be personally secure but would still say the same things because one has to see the whole picture.
It's really pretty easy to work out a route forward, but it immediately gets stuck in political dogma. It's going to take many years to change anything.