Girls aged under-16 would be able to obtain contraceptives after one interview with a qualified pharmacist. This controversial scheme to provide over-the-counter contraceptive pills to teenagers in a bid to cut unintended pregnancies is being piloted in south London.

The move comes after experts warned that the Government is unlikely to meet its target of halving teenage pregnancies by 2010.

Three pharmacies in Southwark and Lambeth, which have the highest teenage pregnancy rates in Britain, are piloting the year-long scheme.

Jo Holmes, head of primary care delivery and development at NHS Southwark, said, "We expect the project to help young women who have not used contraception to access it easily and safely."

In 2007, the rate of teenage pregnancies in under-18s in England was 42 out of every 1,000 girls, with around half ending in an abortion. For Southwark it is one in every 13 girls. Both Southwark and Lambeth aim to reduce this by 40 per cent to 60 per cent.

But those opposed to the plan say it could encourage under-age sex by making it easier for under-16s to get contraception without their parents' knowledge.

Mark Haughton, of the Christian Medical Fellowship, warned, "It may be pouring petrol on the flames of teenage pregnancies."

Posters have been designed for the project but Conservative MP Nadine Dorries, told the Daily Mail, "The poster looks as though it's designed to market something as attractive as sweets, sending a wrong moral message," she said.