BBC News
By Andy Verity
media caption I m devastated that I have been penalised because of my husband s death
When Kim Kingston lost her husband to cancer, she had no idea she could be cut out from government support because she inherited money from his pension.
When the coronavirus crisis struck, Kim s work was cut off by the lockdown.
But she has received nothing from government schemes designed to help support the self-employed.
Kim, from Southsea in Portsmouth, is among millions shut out from help, many of whom could easily be included if the government chose to, research shows.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), which carried out its research for the BBC, concludes there is clear unfairness in some of the exclusions.
BBC News
By Andy Verity
media caption I m devastated that I have been penalised because of my husband s death
When Kim Kingston lost her husband to cancer, she had no idea she could be cut out from government support because she inherited money from his pension.
When the coronavirus crisis struck, Kim s work was cut off by the lockdown.
But she has received nothing from government schemes designed to help support the self-employed.
Kim, from Southsea in Portsmouth, is among millions shut out from help, many of whom could easily be included if the government chose to, research shows.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), which carried out its research for the BBC, concludes there is clear unfairness in some of the exclusions.
BBC News
Excluded from Covid support: Devastated that I ve been penalised
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Beauty therapist Kim Kingston explains how her husband s death led to her losing out on government support during the coronavirus pandemic.
Digital video filmed by Tracey Langford, produced and edited by Dougal Shaw
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