BATTLE lines have been drawn in Bolton over a bid to ban over-the-counter sales of the morning after pill.

Local pro-life campaigners are backing the bid, saying the medication amounts to abortion.

Others believe scrapping the easy availability would mean turning back the clock to desperate times for girls and women.

The Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child (SPUC) launched their High Court challenge yesterday, claiming the morning after pill is a method of early abortion that should be subject to abortion legislation.

Their national director, John Smeaton, likened taking the drug to "unsupervised abortion by pill".

Pro-life charity LIFE has a branch in Bolton that offers counselling to pregnant girls and women.

Chairman of the Bolton LIFE group, Brian Tetlow, said offering the morning after pill without the need for a doctor's prescription is "careless and dangerous".

"This only encourages random sex," he said.

"It's a very dangerous drug, very much more powerful than the long-standing contraceptive pill -- which is on prescription and has from time to time caused problems with women.

"It's a scandalous practice and shows a lack of logic, morality and sanity in the system.

"No duty of care is demonstrated. It's ludicrous".

Nuala Scarisbrick, a trustee of the LIFE charity said: "We are fully in support of the legal action."

The case seems to hinge on when a pregnancy starts -- at the time of fertilisation or later, when the embryo implants itself in the womb.

LIFE, and many organisations like it, believe the former to be true and so view the morning-after pill as an early abortion.

But Anne Furedi of the British Pregnancy Advisory Service said she believed a woman is only pregnant when the fertilised egg is implanted.

She said a ruling in favour of the legal challenge would be "disastrous".

LIFE, however, also link the easy availability with under-age sex and are questioning the drug's safety. "It is mainly aimed at under-age girls," said Nuala. "Many take this thinking it's harmless whereas the health risks are not yet known.

"Statistics show that we are the worst in Europe, and perhaps in the developed world, for teenage pregnancies.

"People take this pill thinking their troubles are over but many remain pregnant and are worried about the effect it has on the baby.

"Also, by encouraging early sex in this way there has been an alarming rise in sexually transmitted diseases."

Denise Carr, from Rainbow Pregnancy Advice Centre, believes "life is precious" and said the morning after pill should not be available over the counter.

"I believe it's opening the door to sexually transmitted diseases," she said.

"It's a security thing -- young kids are tempted on a Saturday night and they know they can get the morning-after pill on Monday morning, so they aren't taking the necessary precautions.

"It's giving the wrong signals."

Denise said she would advise anyone who rings the Rainbow advice line about the morning-after pill to see a GP. "I would also say they should think about it seriously, and that it's better to change their lifestyle," she said.

The British Medical Association supports the drug being available over the counter. The Department of Health also argues that emergency contraception is safe and effective.

Anne Weyman, from the Family Planning Association, said: "We're very hopeful that the bid to halt over-the-counter sales won't get through".

Consultant physician Emile Morgan from the Bolton Centre for Sexual Health, based at the Royal Bolton Hospital, agrees with the drug being available from chemists and believes pharmacists are educated people capable of selling the drug correctly.

Yet Dr Morgan would prefer girls to visit the centre and take in the advice and support on offer. Although Dr Morgan believes life starts at fertilisation, he does not hold the same view as the pro-life campaigners.

"It has to be available for many girls who are desperate -- the point is there is nothing worse than unwanted pregnancy," he said.

"Although I believe that life starts early, I think that a baby's quality of life depends mainly on what sort of love and care they are given."

THE MORNING AFTER PILL - THE FACTS

The morning after pill stops an embryo from implanting in the lining of the womb.

It can be taken up to 72 hours after unprotected sex and involves taking two pills straight away and two more pills 12 hours later.

The pills -- known as Levonelle -- contain the oestrogen and progesterone hormones.

Levonelle is said to prevent 75 per cent of pregnancies if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

Women over the age of 16 have been able to buy the drug without a doctor's prescription since the beginning of last year.

More than a third of emergency contraception is now dispensed in this way.