Could the only way to tackle Grant Shapps continual nonsense about falling rents be getting this guy to follow him round? There’s something to be said for getting your message across by including in every answer exactly the same phrase.
He was a candidate for Governor of New York in 2010.
Indeed! cf IPPR’s new housing strategy (p52, footnote 60) at: http://www.ippr.org/publication/55/9279/together-at-home-a-new-strategy-for-housing
You should also read Matthew Yglesias’s ebook of the same title, which explains how NIMBY regulations contribute to the rent being too damn high. Unfortunately it’s not strictly available for sale in the UK, but you can get round that with sufficient deviousness.