As debate widens about Catholic Church involvement in pregnancy counselling, Anglicare in Sydney has labelled the media reporting of the Government's tender process as "tricky'.

"The media has been tricky on this issue because [Catholic agency] Centacare hasn't been awarded a contract," says Anglicare spokesman Jim Wackett. "The contract was awarded to a private organisation that already runs a number of counselling services on behalf of the Government."

In announcing the $51 million contract to help-line provider McKesson Asia Pacific, Health minister Tony Abbott said Centacare would only provide advice along with a number of secular clinicians who are independent experts in fields of psychiatry, obstetrics and gynaecology.

Furthermore, as clearly outlined in the Health Department press release, the contract to train the counsellors on “best practice” and “non-directive” pregnancy counselling was awarded to pro-choice Family Planning WA.

This did not stop, the Sydney Morning Herald attacking the integrity of the tender process.

The Herald said applicants to run the Federal Government’s pregnancy helpline had their "organisational philosophy” ranked on a scale of zero to 10.

Mr Wackett says "it's very naive' to claim that a pro-choice organisation would not have their biases.

Anglicare was not involved in the tender process.

However, significantly, it decided against tendering for the pregnancy counseling contract for operational reasons and not because of any in principle reservations about the involvement of a church-based organisation.

"The Government wants a phone counselling service and this would require a big start-up," says Anglicare spokesman Jim Wackett. "It wouldn't build on our current competencies."

Anglicare already runs the Carramar support program for young single mums who choose to keep their babies.

"We are already undertaking that kind of pregnancy advice through our existing programs," Mr Wackett says.