2008 1.9TDI gear lever bushes

For the past 10 years I've been maintaing a friend's Fabia Mk2 1.9TDI.  The car has now covered about 150k miles with remarkable few repairs.

When I last serviced it I noticed that the gear lever is very floppy in the horizontal. I suspect that the bushes at the base of the gear lever are well worn (although I have not had the chance to inspect them yet).

I have seen replacement gearlever bushing repair kits on eBay (Chinese copies). Can any members who've done this repair please advise....

1. Are these bushing repair kits of satisfactory quality?

2. Is it possible to replace the bushes without needing to drop the shifter assembly from under the car?

3. Would it be better to replace the entire shifter and cable assembly (I have seen pattern assemblies for about £80)?

Thanks