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Actually, I tend to feel that - with a few caveats - the Type 45 is the right ship for the Royal Navy. It's a bit complicated, so bear with me:

Towards the end of the Cold War the RN became intensely focused upon North Atlantic ASW operations. The RN's solution to deep water ASW was essentially a modification of the WWII 'Escort Group' and 'Support Group' concepts with the addition of sub based ASW hunter-killer operations. The Escort Groups would have been small groups (2-4) of DDG/FFG being directed to hot spots to hunt down and vigorously engage subs. Each group came complete with some area AAW (SeaDart aboard a Type 42), some point defence AAW (SeaWolf aboard a Mod Leander, a Type 22 or a Type 23), 1-3 towed array sonars, and somewhere between 2 and 6 ASW helicopters. The Support Groups were essentially the same as the Escort Group but added a CVS to the mix and with it half a dozen fighter and perhaps a dozen big ASW helicopters.

Post Cold War, the RN emphasis has, of course, changed. Deep water ASW isn't really the all-consuming task it was back in 1988. The RN now is focused upon maritime power projection, which at its core envisages the RN fielding two task groups simultaneously, specifically a carrier group (built around one of the CVF) and an amphibious group (a force able to land and sustain an RM brigade). Ergo, the task of the escort fleet has changed from being 'dispersed ASW surface action groups' to 'task group escorts'.
In this context we can say that there need to be two broad classes of escort: AAW and ASW. AAW escort requires the DDG/FFG to be stationed close to the carrier/'phibs (or slightly up treat) in order to interpose themselves between the direction of an aerial attack and the targets of those attacks. ASW, however, requires the escort to move around the group as required to persecute any threats it finds or to interpose itself between a suspected contact and the carrier/'phibs. So, straight off the bat we can say that having a multipurpose escort is in some ways a false economy since it would have to be tasked as either AAW or ASW in order to do one job properly anyway.
With this in mind, it begs the question of whether having the same class of ship performing each role it the best way to go about doing things. I tend to feel that for the RN it probably isn't. The budget being what it is, I doubt that it'd stretch to turning out escorts that would be truly 1st class in each role, where it may stretch to producing two classes that are specialised and first class in one role and not the other. Type 45 is very definitely a 1st class AAW escort (and probably a better fit for the UK's needs than an equivalent class built around Aegis-SPY-1D), and 6-8 should be enough to provide a couple of escorts to each of the two task groups the RN is expecting to field at any time. C1 (if/when it gets of the ground) can then focus on being the best ASW escort it can be and not worry about area AAW, hopefully lowering the cost somewhat.
The true trick will be in making C2 and C3 capable enough to free up Type 45 and C1 to stick to their core functions.