Excluded UK Campaigners to be interviewed and filmed for Covid-19 Inquiry

Campaign group ExcludedUK, which represents millions of British taxpayers who were denied government financial support during the pandemic, has been asked to contribute to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry by way of being interviewed on camera for an Impact Film that will be shown before the Module 9 evidence

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THIS ARTICLE WAS UPDATED ON 6 OCTOBER 2025

The group’s contribution will be an impact video played at the start of the Module 9 hearings, which focus on the government’s economic response to the crisis.

Wednesday, 10 September 2025, will see the Inquiry hold the final preliminary hearing for its investigation into the Economic response (Module 9).

The development is a major step for the 3.8 million UK taxpayers who, according to ExcludedUK, were left without fair and equal support.

While schemes like the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (furlough) and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) provided a financial lifeline for many, a significant portion of the workforce was left in the cold.

A statement from ExcludedUK, a group that has campaigned for this issue to be put right, describes the situation as a “scandal.”

The categories of those excluded are extensive, covering over 20 different groups of workers. They include:

• New starters and new businesses that had not yet filed a full year of tax returns.
• PAYE freelancers and the newly self-employed.
• Company directors paid in dividends or on an annual PAYE basis.
• Individuals earning less than 50% of their income from self-employment.
• Those with trading profits over £50,000.
• People on maternity, parental, or adoption leave, as well as those whose personal circumstances, such as receiving a pension or carer’s allowance, affected their eligibility.

For these individuals and businesses, the lack of support has had profound and lasting consequences. The campaign group has tragically documented over 40 suicides and hundreds of attempted suicides, with many continuing to face financial devastation long after the lockdowns have ended. For them, the pandemic’s economic fallout is far from over.

Since its inception, ExcludedUK has been steadfast in its demands for accountability and recognition. The group is asking for three key actions from the government:

• A public apology to recognise the injustice and a promise that it will never happen again
• Parity of support for those who were left out
• An acknowledgement of the loss of earnings and subsequent consequential losses

The film’s appearance at the Covid Inquiry offers a platform to ensure the stories of the excluded are heard by a wider audience and to push for accountability for those whose livelihoods were irrevocably damaged. It is hoped that the testimony will bring the issue to the forefront of the national conversation, moving the campaign “one step closer to righting the wrongs of the pandemic.”

This article originally reported that Excluded UK was invited to give evidence to the COVID Inquiry. ExcludedUK will not be giving evidence. They have been asked to contribute by way of being interviewed on camera for an Impact Film that will be shown before the Module 9 evidence is given.