I am lost....
A/THR has no control of pitch??? CLB mode = Speed managed by pitching up and down. And if A/THR is still ON, it means that your speed is not very slow.
Flight Detent says that the plane maintains Vprot.
So if Vprot = 140kts , ELAC will maintain 140kts.
ELAC won't maintain a speed > 140kts
Ok, so how does ELAC know when to maintain a speed > 140kts and when to maintain a speed = Vprot???
Remember, FMGS = A/THR. A/THR system is part of FMGS.