"There is no denying they need do something" - Why? From whose perspective? I am in the CCR almost every week, sometimes twice. It is busier than in the nadir of travel but not unbearably so. Never had an issue finding a seat. Most of the posts up thread seem to suggest an experience not dissimilar to my own. Meanwhile the GF is usually manic whenever I pass through First Wing security. As someone London based / and mostly on T5 routes, CCR is one of my motivators in retaining GGL. Take that away and as others have said there is little incentive to push for it.
From my perspective I have no doubt that should the access rules change it will be a cost decision pure and simple. This has nothing to do with capacity. It's more those glasses of LPGS adding up for BA beancounters. Must be especially galling when they are being quaffed by those on SH tickets, and horror of horrors those flying ET on Leisure, who in turn don't have a business meeting on the end of it. We are in inflationary environment after all. If the Lounge budgets are fixed then the give has to be in quality of service and access rights. Slightly off topic couldn't help notice when I was in the lounge earlier this week that there was no French Red, no brandy. Staff had no idea when and if they might return. I'm not a frequent poster but I did comment originally that when access rules were changed that given the reduction in F cabin sizes, and hence the lounge demographic mutating from F to GGL, that the catering quality was likely to fall. If you now prune the GGL side of the equation to those over 5,000 you will surely get a quieter lounge. But given BA's propensity to bank cost savings I'm not sure those wishing for it are going to see the benefit in the booze / catering budget...