Every silver lining has a cloud and a few clouds might help our current situation.

We have enjoyed some lovely weather this summer and that has caused fate to claim its payment.

We’re facing hosepipe bans.

I don’t know why I get so annoyed by this. Ask any of the plants in my garden and they will tell you I am not a regular user of a hosepipe but at least my brown grass is the result of my choice.

It’s like cleaning my windows; I don’t use the right as much as I should but I’d be upset if it were taken away.

Apathy is the main reason a hosepipe ban works.

We are still allowed to fill buckets of water for the garden, it’s not a bucket ban, but they know we can’t be bothered.

If there’s lifting involved we’ll let the plants die.

Another reason a hosepipe ban annoys me is the people behind it.

I don’t mind being told to conserve water but it would be nice if the water companies headed their own advice.

I might be slightly wasteful at times but I don’t have lose millions of litres of water to leaks that should have been repaired.

The water companies literally have one job, get the water from the reservoirs to our taps. It’s the equivalent of hearing a gas company say we’re putting the heating on too much only to find half of their pipe network is on fire.

Would they let me use a hosepipe if I promised to puncture it full of holes like a scale model of their system?

Environment Secretary George Eustice said some local providers "have rightly taken action to mitigate the effects of this prolonged dry weather".

It’s been a time of low rainfall and hot weather.

Who would have predicted that? Well, anyone who has seen anything on TV about climate change.

Every time Sir David Attenborough narrates a TV show he gives it a mention. We were given clues.

Did the water companies get to work future-proofing the pipes?

No. I don’t know why not, they weren’t busy doing anything else. We have seen reports of raw sewage being pumped into our rivers and waterways.

I’m never sure if these sewage spills are through bad maintenance or they want to make sure we don’t get our water straight from the rivers when we get upset with their service.

They didn’t predict the shortage of water so they tell us we can’t use as much.

How about I say I didn’t predict the lack of money in my current account so I’m introducing a direct debit ban?