French Ethics: It is 5c!

My last day of local cragging and I'm flailing around on a route that should be well within my capabilities. The guidebook says it has a hard start, but this is ridiculous! Just as I'm employing some more extreme French ethics, a bloke wanders up:

'Hmm...I was hoping to work on zat route.' (Common climbing speak for thrutching about on a bit of rock that's probably beyond your capabilities.)
'I wasn't expecting to have to!' I reply
'Non, I mean I want to do work on eet'
I give him a quizzical look. 'Eh'?
'All of ze important holds have snapped off.'

Ah, that would explain why it feels so hard.

'Oh, so it's now graded 7 something, is it?'
'No, eet eez a 5c.'

It most definitely is not a 5c.

'Eet eez a 5c.' And with that, he whips out a drill and starts drilling away at the rock to form new holds.
I really can't believe my eyes. In the UK, it is mightily controversial even to drill bolts into cliffs for protection. If someone got out a drill and started altering the rock, tea would most certainly be spilt in spluttered indignation and ethical outrage. If that drilling maniac happened to be French, well...moustaches would certainly be set a-quivering both sides of the channel.

If only we had that much rock to play with in the UK...