Self-employed people who have missed out on other government support during the coronavirus scheme can apply for grants from today.

HMRC says around 3.5million people are covered by the scheme and most have been contacted to file a claim which can be made from May 17.

It says money, up to a maximum of £7,500 to cover the last three months, should be in bank accounts by May 25.

Payments under the Self Employed Income Support Scheme are calculated as 80 per cent of average monthly profits over the last three years.

No mention has been made on whether the initiative will be extended in line with the Job Retention Scheme which will now run until the end of October.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: "With payments arriving before the end of this month, the self-employed across the UK will have money their pockets to help them through these challenging times."

Anyone who started a business from early April last year is not eligible along with those who pay themselves solely in dividends from a limited company.

Derek Cribb, chief executive of the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed, said: "For the self-employed, coronavirus is not only a health crisis, but also a pressing income crisis.

"Until now they've been coping either by applying for Universal Credit or by digging into their savings."