The system for appointing junior doctors to training posts was “so conspicuously unfair as to amount to an abuse of power”, the High Court was told yesterday.

On the first day of a legal challenge brought by RemedyUK against the Department of Health, the court was told that the announcement by Patricia Hewitt, the Health Secretary, of the abandonment of the computer-based system for the second round of interviews did not improve the position.

Far from removing the need for judicial review, “the announcement has made it yet more imperative”, the court was told.

Ms Hewitt told Parliament that the second round would now be CV-based, with junior doctors applying to individual deaneries who oversee training at a local level.

But RemedyUK, the junior doctors’ group, argued that there was “no advantage whatsoever for affected doctors in reverting to a system of deanery appointments”.

Attempts by the Review Group appointed by the department to rescue the Medical Training Application Service (MTAS) had modified “the basic architecture” of MTAS, affecting the interview process and the ability of job applicants to reorder their preferences.

Thomas de la Mare, appearing for RemedyUK, said that this change was “an unqualified blow”, and the “only remaining feature of MTAS with any merit has been removed”.

He argued that key decisions with a direct impact on doctors were being made “without any form of notice or consultation”.

He urged the judge to order the Health Secretary to consider alternatives and to consult with the junior doctors.

The hearing continues.

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