THE family of a murdered Cwmbran private eye has been granted legal aid to challenge a Home Office refusal to hold a judicial inquiry into his death.

Daniel Morgan was found dead with an axe in his head in the car park of a south London pub 17 years ago.

Despite four inquiries and three internal reviews over the 37-year-old's death, no- one has ever been convicted of the killing.

Home Office Minister Caroline Flint said in June the government view was that a judicial inquiry would not have a "realistic prospect of uncovering new evidence".

The dead detective's brother, Alistair Morgan, from London, refused to accept the ruling and is preparing his legal challenge.

He told the Argus: "We have been granted legal aid, which is great news, so we can keep pressure on the Home Office. I am pleased that the Legal Services Commission was fair-minded enough to see there is a very real reason for this challenge.

"It's not just about my family, there are wider issues here."

Mr Morgan, a 55-year-old freelance translator, said he had only a modest income and would not have been able to pay the legal expenses.

He said a legal outline for his family's challenge would be submitted to a district judge who would decide if the case should be passed to the High Court.

A book about the Metropolitan Police is to be published on September 30 and will cover Daniel Morgan's murder investigation in four chapters.

The case is also to get further coverage in a TV documentary into the death that will be shown during the first week of October.