Long-awaited report into unsolved London murder will be published next month

A long-awaited report into the unsolved murder of Daniel Morgan in south-east London will be published next month.

The private investigator was killed with an axe in a pub car park in Sydenham, in 1987.

The Daniel Morgan Independent Panel says a "small team" from the Home Office will be permitted to read it before its release on 15th June, subject to final confirmation from Home Secretary Priti Patel.

It follows pressure on Ms Patel from crossbench peer Baroness O'Loan, who chairs the DMIP, to guarantee the report would be made public by June 16 to enable Mr Morgan's family to finally receive answers 34 years after his death.

Mr Morgan, a private investigator, was killed with an axe in the car park of the Golden Lion pub in Sydenham, south-east London, on March 10 1987.

Despite five police inquiries and an inquest, no-one has been brought to justice over the father-of-two's death, with the Metropolitan Police admitting corruption had hampered the original murder investigation.

The panel said an agreement had been reached for a small team'' from the Home Office to be permitted to read the report in advance of publication.

In a statement, the panel said it had had series of discussions'' with Ms Patel to reach thetarget'' date of June 15. It said:

An agreement has been reached that a small team from the Home Office will be permitted to read the report in advance of publication, under strict viewing conditions, at the premises of the panel.

As was always envisaged, the Home Secretary will be provided with a copy of the report to read before publication.

There are no redactions in the panel's report, which is complete. In the unlikely event that any redaction is applied by the Home Secretary, this will be clearly indicated in a footnote.''

Mr Morgan's family said in a statement:

We understand that the terms of the agreement reached between the Panel and the Home Secretary in this regard require her to submit to conditions that are designed to safeguard the integrity and the independence of the Panel and their report.

We understand further that, in the unlikely event of the Home Secretary seeking to redact anything in the Panel's report, any such redaction will be highlighted on the face of the published report, and the redacted content will be shared with us.

We hope that the Home Secretary does not seek to go behind that agreement, and we call on her to ensure that she co-operates with the Panel to allow the publication of the report to proceed as announced without any further delay.

And we say this to the Panel: we know that you have had to stand firm in the face of this Home Secretary to bring us where we are, and you know that you have to continue standing firm going forward for the sake of your own integrity; you know you have our support in this regard; and you know we rely upon you to do whatever it takes to ensure that your report is published without any interference from her.

We look to you in hope that you will not let us down.''

Ms Patel previously insisted it is right'' she reads the report before it is published, although MPs and peers have been told she has yet to receive it.

The Home Office said in response to the DMIP announcement:

Our sympathies remain with the family of Daniel Morgan and the Home Secretary recently met with the Panel Chair to find a way forward for publication.

We are pleased the Panel has now agreed to provide the report so that the Home Secretary can meet her responsibilities to ensure publication complies with human rights and national security considerations, should these arise.

Once the Home Secretary has fulfilled these duties, we are committed to publishing the report as soon as possible.''