A referendum for a reform on the fertility and bioethics law in Italy has been declared invalid. Under widespread pressure from the powerful Roman Catholic Church for all followers to boycott the ballot, only 25.9 percent of eligible voters cast their ballot before polls closed at 3:00p.m. (1300 GMT) on Monday, far from the 50 percent which is needed to pass the referendum.

The result may have disappointed lawmakers, women groups and scientists, who complained the current law in Italy is too restrictive, threatening freedom of choice for women and the advance of medical research.

At present, the law bans egg and sperm donations as well as embryo research and freezing, and allows only three eggs at a time to be fertilised in the test tube.

Italy, home to the Roman Catholic Church, has the most conservative fertility and bioethics law in Europe, as the Church has always promoted the "intangibility of human life from conception to its natural end".

Just prior to the referendum being put forward for the vote, cardinals and bishops urged a boycott of the poll with the slogan, "Life cannot be put to a vote: Don't vote".

In the address given by Pope Benedict XVI at a conference of the Diocese of Rome regarding the role of the family, he said that "Children are the fruit of marriage and reflects God’s love for man" and he therefore condemned "terminating or manipulating life".

Yesterday’s result was celebrated by the Roman Catholics. "It is a result beyond expectations ... A result that primarily shows the wisdom of the Italian people," top Italian Cardinal Camillo Ruini, who led the Church's campaign, said Monday.

"The Italian people who know how to defend life have won," said Maria Burani Procaccini, a lawmaker from the centre-right, thanking the Church for "acting with conviction and force."