Paying for any training for any job is wrong. I accept this is quite an amazing statement as almost no aviator has ever finally made it into the cockpit in their dream job without funding at least some of the road to utopia
Proper selection and screening for any particular job or career stream to help in the process of putting the most capable human beings into the most suitable job, supported by the government and the employer fully serves both safety, help ensure profit whilst also better providing the basic needs of the human being involved in the rigorous path through initial training - obviously training of sorts contuinues upto career end
The current set up in aviation in the UK and Europe is based solely on profit of both the airlines (to differing levels of efficiency) and a number of FTOs who seem to have ringfenced the market astonishingly well
You can class pay to fly as someone who pays for line training, however it could be argued that a sneakier way of doing this blatant pay to fly can be hidden beneath an over-inflated course cost that a percentage can then hypothetically could be passed onto the airline.
Even further arguement could cover that any training cost even down to the initial PPL at a small grass field could also be "pay to fly" as the student is actually funding their own path into the industry
The answer is out there somewhere, but it is very clear to see, even though there is movement at present at BA, Virgin, Thomson, Thomas Cook, Jet 2, Norwegian, Easyjet and RYR that the current model in place although maybe safe in operation and good for profit for airlines and FTOs falls short in so many other areas.
Employment law changes, ever increasing focus on profit to the point of absurdness, a lack of cohesion from all union members across the board and to a minor extent people willing to pay to try to jump the queue are all reasons why the industry continues to degrade the career of the airline pilot.
Lobbying may work, but it all depends upon who has which fingers in which pies.