Clarence appeared again as a guest on the BBC Sunday Politics South East on BBC1, alongside Labour PPC Tris Osborne (Chatham and Aylesford) In a broad debate with Tris, Clarence discussed the urgent need for greater investment in the South East's railway infrastructure, not least his support for the campaign to introduce vital capacity via another mainline for Brighton to London (BML2) and he expressed his concern over Labour's suggestions of a limited reintroduction of rent controls. House prices and rents in Brighton remain prohibitively high for many people, not just the city's young people and its 30,000-strong student population, while nearly 19,000 people remain on Brighton's housing waiting lists. Clarence made the point that against the backdrop of the government successfully delivering growth in the national economy to improve people's living standards and wages overall, the answer actually lies in more affordable housing being built, with effective enforcement action being taken simultaneously against rogue landlords and poor conditions. Historically, rent controls have been shown not to work, often choking off the housing supply when landlords simply stop renting their properties out or sell up altogether rather than accept capped rents.
You can view Clarence's appearance here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03zhs9x/Sunday_Politics_South_East_06_04_2014/
(from 31.05 - 51.05)