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Rural poverty in southern England is rapdily increasing. I don't think that this will be a shock to anyone living in Sussex or Kent. What to do about it? Well, a start would be to release more land for housing so that supply increases and prices fall (after the recovery, which will surely come).
separating the wanted from the unwanted
The only problem would be whether they would release enough land to provide housing over and above the numbers that would first be taken by the second home/upmarket commuter brigade. I know that techinically that would bring their money into the area but I don’t think they would necessarily be spending it in ruralville.
Anything which increases supply will naturally lead to a reduction in price until equilibrium is found. See Adam Smith.