I sense that Afpex has become a kind of "bashing" issue, just like Mode S became a "CAA bashing" issue.
Regardless of the rights or wrongs, people rally behind easily identifiable causes
The real issue with Afpex, in most (not all) situations, is that many UK pilots are not up to speed with the internet and the most basic IT skills.
Weather moved de facto to the internet a few years ago, but it is still possible for an IT-phobic person to get away without it. Most people do local burger runs only and one can get the weather off the TV, and by looking out of the window.
Notams moved totally to the internet c. 2003 (unless one flies local burger runs, and hangs around a club where local area notams are pinned to the board each morning) but many or most pilots don't get notams, and for burger runs they usually get away with it.
Flight plan filing can still be done by handing the FP in the tower, and other methods, but flyers who don't fly from a towered airfield, and have no fax facility are now stuffed. They will have to use the internet. I suspect this has caught a lot of the most "traditional" pilots, who have thus far managed without any technology, but now cannot fly to LTQ because that needs a flight plan filed.
It's time to get a laptop with mobile (GPRS/3G) internet and move into the 21st century. Life is so much easier. You can get weather, notams, all kinds of stuff, very easily and conveniently. You will never look back.