Campaign groups are pressing the Government to publish a timetable for the release of Shaker Aamer, the last remaining British resident in Guantanamo Bay.

In a letter to Foreign Secretary William Hague, Amnesty International’s UK director, Kate Allen, has said without “robust action” from the UK government Mr Aamer could languish in detention indefinitely.

Despite never being charged with any offence, Mr Aamer, a 43-year-old from Battersea, has been held at the US detention centre in Cuba for nearly nine years - and has been in US custody since August 2001.

He alleges he was tortured in Afghanistan by US officials while British secret services officers were present, and has spent long periods of imprisonment at Guantanamo in solitary confinement.

Ms Allen said: “When it announced financial settlements for former Guantanamo detainees last week the Government said it wanted to ‘draw a line’ under cases involving detention and alleged abuse overseas, yet Shaker Aamer is still languishing in a cell at Guantanamo.

“It was very welcome to hear a recent announcement by the Foreign Secretary that he has asked Secretary of State Clinton to return Shaker to the UK, but in the absence of charges or a proper trial we now need to see the Mr Hague and the US authorities agreeing a specific timetable for Shaker’s release.

“Dealing with what the Government calls ‘legacy issues’ in the ‘war on terror’ must mean ensuring justice for Shaker . . . not only has Shaker lost nearly nine years of his life in this sad, tragic affair, he alleges he has suffered torture virtually under the noses of UK officials.

“Shaker’s alleged torture must be properly investigated and the forthcoming inquiry into the possible involvement of UK officials in torture and illegal detention must look at Shaker’s case in detail.”

Amnesty is asking supporters in the UK to write to their MP, and, in a two-pronged lobbying move, are lobby US official responsible for Guantanamo - including Ambassador Daniel Fried, special envoy for the closure of Guantanamo Bay. Campaigners in the US are also being urged to write to Mr Hague about Mr Aamer.

As of November 17, 174 men remained detained at Guantanamo. The majority have been held there without charge or trial for more than eight years, but Mr Aamer’s release would end Britain’s involvement with detainees being held there.

Mr Aamer's UK lawyer Gareth Peirce said: “How is it possible for our Government to talk of drawing a line under the past when a British resident who has been hideously tortured over many years is still in unlawful detention in Guantanamo?

“Are we really as a country prepared to allow his tenth year of captivity to begin in the hands of Britain’s closest ally?”

Battersea’s Conservative MP, Jane Ellison, said the announcement there was to be the inquiry - into allegations of UK complicity in torture and other human rights abuses of individuals detained abroad - had given the campaign for Mr Aamer’s release new impetus.

She said: “I have raised his case in Parliament on four occasions since the election and discussed it with ministers and Foreign Office officials in detail; the tone of the exchanges has changed a lot in a few months and I feel his case is firmly on the Government’s agenda.”

The Save Shaker Aamer Campaign group is also hosting a day of events on December 11.