Holly Willoughby was close to tears during the heated debate, which discussed how late terminations are carried out and what happens to the foetus.

This Morning had chosen to cover the controversial topic after the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) said it believes women shouldn't face criminal prosecution if they undergo the procedure after 24 weeks.

They were joined by journalist Nilufer Atik, who believes the foetus has the right to life after 24 weeks, and agony aunt Hilary Freeman.

However, when Nilufer began to argue her side of the debate, things got extremely graphic.

She said: “What is the difference between aborting that child the day before he or she is due to be born and murdering that child the instant he or she is born? I don't see the difference.

“The child is still a fully formed human being who has a right to live. I think a lot of people don't realise, in the very late stages of pregnancy how barbaric an abortion is.”

Hilary, who herself has been through a stillbirth, was quick to dismiss Nilufer’s claims.

She said: “That’s not the case,” adding that most women actually give birth to a baby during an abortion.

Nilufer fired back: “That in itself is traumatic enough, and I’ve been told that if they can’t get the baby out then they crush the spine.”

The camera then cut to Holly, who covered her face with her hands in shock.

Looking sickened, she uttered: “Oh God, no.”

Phillip, at this point, cut in: “The trouble with something like this is that there are no clear boundaries with the way life world, the way your life turns out during a pregnancy

“You could have no idea where it’s going to lead… you may have been happy at the beginning of a pregnancy and something terrible could have happened at the end.”

Viewers, however, had taken note of how upset Holly looked during the segment.

One wrote: "#abortiondebate I saw the look on @hollywills face. can't bear thinking about it...".

Another added: "@hollywills ..Love how real you are .. Abortion talks viable disturbing you - Did me too! # goodmommarolemodel! #againstanystagetermination."

"@hollywills - your face says it all. I don't know how you held back not saying anything,” said another.

However others accused the debate of being one-sided.

Some also said that both Holly and Phillip should have remained unbiased during the discussion.

Another added: “Holly irritates me. It's her job to preside over harsh topics and she keeps crying and then the whole thing turns into 'look at Holly' as everybody tries to comfort HER.

“If she can't do the job, make her entertainment correspondent or something and get a proper journalist in to host the grown up stuff.”

The comments were similar to those made by Samantha Brick in 2013, when she slammed Holly Willoughby for being ‘unprofessional’ on ITV’s This Morning.

She said: “WHAT? That's pathetic, she simply shouldn't be covering news stories if she can't hold it together…

“Holly is paid a fortune by ITV to present This Morning. She wasted precious airtime, putting her feelings first, that could have been used advising and warning and helping people who are genuinely worried - but no she preferred to blub.”

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