Safety Helmut,
You're right on both counts.
1. As you say, the civil rules have no latitude for ALARP per se, and only work to absolute safety target. But, it raises the supplementary question - what do you conclude from the AD, either:
a) an airbus with white clips doesn't meet the 10-7 hull loss safety targets, or
b) an airbus with white clips meets the 10-7 target anyway, but they are doing it to reduce the risk lower still
If a), then by rights it shouldn't be certified.
If b), then to be flippant why are they bothering as it already meets the targets?
Can you find out which it is?
b) seems more likely to me, and it has the hallmarks of an ALARP based judgement by the CAA as to whether to enforce it on airlines.
2. The risk is not catastrophic, the severity / consequence of the risk is. I was going to apologise, but on reflection that is quite pedantic - you clearly work in the safety field (the right character to have of course)!