YORK MP Hugh Bayley believes the law may need changing to reinforce patients' rights to choose their own GP.

But about 500 patients from York Medical Group in Monkgate are understood to have exercised their own rights by leaving the practice before a legal deadline.

They transferred from YMG to the adjacent Minster Health Surgery before an injunction - barring them from being treated by Drs Martin Ashley and Gill Towler for the next 12 months - came into effect. Dr Ashley, who has begun working as a locum at Minster after leaving YMG, can treat them without breaking the law.

The injunction was obtained last month by the GPs' colleagues at YMG, citing a covenant signed by the pair in their YMG contracts.

Mr Bayley has written to a patient aggrieved by the court decision, Frank Harris, to say he plans to raise the issue of patients' rights to choose their own GP with the Department of Health.

He said the court judgment appeared to have undermined patients' freedom to go on the list of whichever GP they chose.

But he stressed that if the law were to be changed, it would not affect the YMG case.

Meanwhile, a fighting fund to help meet Dr Ashley's and Dr Towler's legal costs, set up by patients aggrieved by the High Court ruling, has raised almost £1,000 in a week.

Mr Harris, one of the fund organisers, said 20 to 30 donations had come in so far, taking the fund total to £955, with more cheques promised. He said donations to H.A.T Fund (Help Ashley and Towler) should be sent to 103, Stockton Lane.

The YMG has said previously that it had only taken out the injunction reluctantly, and stressed that the provision of services at the group's Monkgate surgery will continue in exactly the same way following the departure of Drs Ashley and Towler.

Updated: 11:28 Monday, July 09, 2001