A senior Pakistani government official said that the decision had been "taken out of compassion and not because of pressure", after reports that Mirza-Tahir Hussain faced execution on November 1 caused outrage among his family and supporters.

The stay came after The Times revealed that the Prince of Wales had personally intervened by writing to the Pakistani Prime Minister to appeal for clemency for Hussain, who was due to be hanged during the Prince's first tour of the country.

Hussain, 36, has been on death row in Rawalpindi for ten years after he was found guilty of murdering a taxi driver. The former Territorial Army officer from Leeds had been acquitted by Lahore's High Court but the case was referred to a religious court which reversed the decision and sentenced him to death.

His brother, Amjad Hussain, speaking on Sky News after the decision was announced said that the continued delay of his execution was "torture and murder". He demanded that his brother be granted a pardon.

"It's not a question of any more stays. It's a question of release. My brother’s served a 36-year sentence, with remission, for a crime he did not commit.”

"Who are they just lingering the plight of my brother. It just beggars belief.

"I am really indebted to, and I'm really grateful to His Royal Highness for making the representation and I'm sure that something must have prevailed him to do that.

"When he arrives in Pakistan he should reiterate that to President Musharraf and, if it's in his powers, he should bring my brother home," he said.

This is the fourth stay of execution granted to Hussain, whose case has also been argued by Tony Blair and supported by the European Parliament.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall are due to arrive in Pakistan on October 29. He wrote to the Prime Minister, Shaukat Aziz, this month after guidance from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and his advisers.

A spokesman at Clarence House said yesterday: "The Prince of Wales has been concerned about this case for some time and has raised it with the Prime Minister of Pakistan."

Under Pakistan's parallel Islamic legal system, Hussain could be freed if the victim's family accepts a "blood money" settlement. The family of the taxi driver, Jamshed Khan, had accepted almost £100,000 but later changed their minds.

Rab Nawaz Noon, the family's lawyer, said: "The Government should not entertain this appeal. The family is not prepared to accept blood money. They want to see him [Hussain] hang for the crime he has done."

Mr Tony Blair told the Commons that there would be "very serious" consequences if the execution went ahead. The comment has been interpreted as a threat to recall the British High Commissioner from Islamabad, although it is unlikely that the Prime Minister would want to damage relations with a key ally in the war against Islamist terrorism.

Hussain was 18 when he left West Yorkshire in December 1988 to visit relatives in Pakistan. Three days after arriving he took a train from Karachi to Rawalpindi and then hailed a taxi for the journey to his family's village.

Later that night he led police to the body of the taxi driver. He told them that the driver had tried to sexually assault him and pulled a gun, and that during a struggle the weapon went off and killed the driver. He was convicted of murder and has been in custody since.

Mr Hussain's MP, Greg Mullholland, has urged the Prince to cancel his trip unless the execution is stopped. But the Clarence House spokesman said: "We will act in accordance with Foreign Office advice."

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