Don't get me wrong; I love the summer and its sunshine and I'd much rather weather like this than wash-outs. But guess what, not the south east corner, which covers Sussex. In 2024-2025, the South East Water area lost 105 million litres of drinking water every day, 29 per cent more than the absolute permitted maximum. If you compare the number of South East Water hose pipe bans with those Southern Water have triggered, you'll find that the former have introduced bans four times in the last five years and the latter just once. Spain has extensive reservoirs and water transfer schemes in some regions and Australia invested billions in water security after the Millennium drought, including desalination plants and water conservation measures.