CORONAVIRUS: Self-employed offered support worth 80per cent of average monthly profits

The Chancellor said the move - worth up to a maximum of £2,500 a month - would cover 95per cent of self-employed workers.

The package comes after the Government came under sustained pressure as its initial package of financial support only covered employees.

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Mr Sunak said: "To support those who work for themselves, today I am announcing a new self-employed income support scheme.

"The Government will pay self-employed people who have been adversely affected by the coronavirus a taxable grant worth 80per cent of their average monthly profits over the last three years, up to £2,500 a month."

The Chancellor said the scheme will be available "no later" than the beginning of June.

It is open to anyone with trading profits of up to £50,000 and will only be available to those who make the majority of their income from self-employment so only the "genuinely self-employed" benefit.

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"And to minimise fraud only those who are already in self-employment who have a tax return for 2019 will be able to apply," he said.

"95per cent of people who are majority self-employed will benefit from this scheme."

The Chancellor said "it provides an unprecedented level of support for self-employed people".

Boris Johnson has previously warned that the self-employed may not be able to get through the coronavirus crisis "without any kind of hardship at all".

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But the Prime Minister said he wanted to get "parity of support" so the self-employed could have similar levels of protection to waged workers.

Mr Sunak set out plans for 80per cent wage subsidies for PAYE employees last week.