Paul McInerney was among the  thousands of retail investors who backed Neil Woodford some eight years ago, when the star UK fund manager readied his departure from Invesco Perpetual to set up his own venture.

McInerney invested £28,000 in Woodford’s Equity Income fund when it launched to fanfare in 2014. But on 3 June 2019, the former financial services professional from Kent was stunned to learn he couldn’t access the savings he had tied up in Woodford’s struggling £3.7bn flagship fund.