Yes, JAA rules are fairly logical when you think about it - the trouble is, COMPLETE harmonisation is still some way off.
I guess doing the CPL in Blighty then the IR in Spain should take care of the problem, the IR being "only" a rating added to the CPL... however, you would lose the cost advantage of Spain on the CPL, and you would need your CPL actually issued by the CAA before going to sunny Spain to do the IR - therefore, the IR licence issue would have to be paid for (whereas it's added to the CPL licence issue free of charge in Britain). I suppose the MEP rating in Spain would pose no problem, since then again, it's "only" a rating...
Wow! And I thought Air Law was complicated...