You are right about the 7 exams; sorry...
But
It took me 4 months of daily study, combined with a full time job to be ready for the exams
is way way way over the top for the operational TK actually required for IFR flight - especially knowing how little present fresh JAA IR holders know about operational stuff.
4 months daily study is obscene.
EASA has already proposed that certain regulatory proposals should apply ‘where so permitted under national law’,
Well, there's your solution
That is quite a shift from their previous position, which was total uniformity across the EU.