Government guidelines on abortion in Northern Ireland are misleading and legally inaccurate, the High Court has heard.

The claims were made as the pro-life group SPUC launched a challenge against the government's abortion guidelines.

Guidance was published in March, five years after the Court of Appeal ruled the government should inquire into the provision of termination services.

A barrister for the Department of Health, claimed SPUC had failed to pass the threshold on any of its points.

Abortion is illegal in Northern Ireland, except where the mother's life or mental well-being are considered at risk.

The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) is seeking a declaration that what guidance has been produced, does not properly set out the law.

Source: BBC, 30 June 2009