Is it inevitable? Is the battle lost? Will I too have to get a smartphone just to be able to do the basics?
There’s middle ground. Here in the US, they sell “shechted” phones with apps such as browsers and video players removed. I don’t know how easy it is to get these in EY, but in theory, you should be able to get a smartphone which does nothing besides the minimum you need – your company’s security app, and perhaps SMS.
You can even get it as a second device, and only use it when you need it for those, and continue to use your basic phone for talk.
There are a lot of people who do that here in the US.