Absolutely, European Embassies verify the papers and the status of the Filipino citizen thru the Philippines administration. And if they smell something strange or unclear, visa is denied. Most Euroepan countries are tightening their imigration rules. That's why it's always better to follow rules and requirements, even if we all would like to shorten them!
And don't forget he is not a UK citizen but an Italian one. So it make it a bit more difficult (IE it's usually not possible to request a Fiancé visa outside its home and citizenship country, Italy in his case).
