Caz - I don't feel the same. If the difference between having water in the winter and not is saving that 6% of water by not using hosepipes, I'm OK with that! I remember living in Yorkshire in the mid-90s when Yorkshire Water had to use hundreds of tankers back and forth along the M62 because the reservoirs ran dry!

We are in Veolia's "Central" area (they have a map of their supply area here) - I don't think that Ruislip is a border case because we're pretty well into the pink area. They don't seem to be making it up about the low levels of groundwater - their graph showing the measurements looks pretty bleak!

I don't think, though, that garden centres are disadvantaged by the hosepipe ban - I don't think that it affects them at all. Their notes on the ban explains that the ban restricts the use of water for "watering a 'garden' using a hosepipe" and "watering plants on domestic or other non-commercial premises using a hosepipe". It defines what a 'garden' is:

“A garden” does not include the following:

1. agricultural land;
   
2. other land used in the course of a business for the purposes of growing, for sale or
   commercial use, any crops, fruit, vegetables or other plants;
   
3. land used for the purposes of a National Plant Collection;
   
4. a temporary garden or flower display;
   
5. plants (including plant organs, seeds, crops and trees) which are in an outdoor pot or in the ground, under cover.

Further down, it goes on to say that a greenhouse is considered "under cover"... so you and I can water our plants that are in pots and in greenhouses - and garden centres can water their plants too. I've seen them using hoses at Homebase and B&Q so I'm sure they all know that they can.

So we can use our hosepipes for the things that need hosepipes. I just wish they were allowed on allotments - they're banned on all Hillingdon allotments all year round!