Thanks for your advise, i realise that items automatically relist but all common sense dictate that if I remove the item as "no longer available for  sale" it will not be available for sale, no ifs or buts, no automatic relisting would make that item available again.

I cannot see the items specifics again because it is not listed any more, all I have is the email telling me that the item will be relisted and if I open tht Item it will tell me that "You ended this listing by indicating this item is no longer available". 

I don't like to relist it just to untick relist and unlist again, I am sure ebay will find a way to penalise me for making this change.

It is like Schrödinger's cat, both dead and alive at the same time, in ebay terms the item is available and not available at the same time.