Almost three in five applications for discretionary £500 payments to help people self-isolate in Dorset have been rejected, figures suggest.
The grant, targeted at workers not eligible for the main Test and Trace Support Payment because they do not receive benefits, helps people with coronavirus on low incomes to self-isolate if they cannot work from home.
But figures obtained by the Labour party show more than 70% of applications across England were rejected, as the Government denied claims that it was planning to extend the payment to everyone who tests positive for Covid-19.
A freedom of information request showed 164 applications were made to Dorset County Council.