Visitors to Brighton often form the impression that it is posh and prosperous.

But for more years than anyone can remember, Brighton has had plenty of poverty.

The inhabitants were poor when The Lanes consisted of small fishing cottages. Prinny made the resort fashionable 200 years ago but only a small number of people could afford the finery.

You only have to look at the tightly-terraced houses in the now gentrified North Laine and Hanover areas to realise penury abounded when Brighton became industrialised following the arrival of the railway.

Anyone reading the series of books produced by QueenSpark, in which elderly folk reminisce about the past, will see what grinding poverty there was for most people between the two world wars.

To the outside world, it was a surprise when the first deprivation index was produced, more than 20 years ago, showing there was more poverty in Brighton than in many northern industrial cities. That's partly because in the bedsitter belt, it can be hidden behind fine facades and the people who sleep on the beach cannot always be seen.

Poverty is always relative. The average household today living on benefit probably has more spending money and possessions than the typical family of the Fifties but the people involved may feel poorer as they see greater prosperity around them.

In the last three decades, Brighton has also fallen behind other towns in the largely prosperous South-East. Unemployment has been stubborn. Low wages have been endemic. Housing has been particularly poor. Opportunity often seems to have gone elsewhere.

But in the past two years there has been a marked improvement.

A recent count of rough sleepers shows the number has fallen from 44 to six. I don't believe the figures but they do indicate a trend. Unemployment, while still above the national and regional average, has shown an encouragingly steady decline.

The town was formerly full of empty office blocks. But in Queen's Road and West Street, there is hardly any space to be had these days.

There are also new hotels opening.

There were always a few smart shops in Brighton, mainly concentrated on The Lanes. But they are now expanding much more widely into the North Laine area, North Street and parts of Hove.

Other good signs abound. The restaurant and coffee bar culture shows no sign of diminishing. The reopening of the Dome will create a cultural complex unrivalled in the region. The concentration by tourism bosses on attracting wealthy visitors is reaping dividends.

There is still much to be done. The housing problem is particularly hard to solve. The city also acts as a magnet for many people without much money, who settle in the South because this is a diverse and tolerant area. While most are welcome, they add to the problem.

Generally, I am more gung ho about Brighton's prospects than at any time since I first moved here, many years ago. While the poor will always be with us, there are fewer of them. I know the moaning minnies will not agree but they will criticise anything.

They will be particularly upset that council tax in the city is set to soar next spring but there is a silver lining even to that financial cloud. Part of the reason for the meagre Government grant, which affects the charge, is the decline of deprivation down here.