Problem is it’s given away like you say already so what’s the difference? It seems the only people making obstacles is the rsgb Who in my knowledge of working with them are out of touch with radio and incompetent , rsgb are a middle man company holding on to a sad to say dieing hobby just look at the dinners and meetings not one young person there and a jolly boys outing , I don’t see how it would be a free for all as you’d be given a foundation level license callsign so you could be identified which would be no different to holding one from doing a simple corse, like you said ofcom don’t have the resources if it went like that but what’s stopping that free for all right now then ? Ofcom do have lots of resources but they have no interest in any of the ham bands nor problems on there as no money for their company is coming in for amateur radio so they just don’t care . Re the 11m a majority of hams were 11m operators and that’s what got them into it ,
I’d love to have a radio full of people from all different backgrounds and levels of radio experience and of all ages etc but if companies and hanger Oners continue to covet the dead ham bands like this I only suspect a quieter bandscan as the years go on till no ones left apart from the 5/9 next contact operators,
All I’m saying is make low power entry level easily accessible and available to get people into it then if they want to go intermediate or full then yes they have to take a test