HEAVY downpours and showers, which made last month the wettest for 23 years, have made it less likely that there will be tougher curbs on the use of water.

Thames Water is continuing to review the need for a drought order but has admitted May's record 96mm rainfall could stave off any immediate action.

It has not been as wet in the region since 1983 and almost double the average rainfall for May since records began 109 years ago, the Thames Water figures reveal.

Thames Water spokesman Andrew Boyd said: "We are still reviewing the situation week by week. The recent amount of rainfall makes it less likely that we will be applying a drought order but this doesn't rule out the possibility in the future."

A drought order would put stringent restrictions on businesses and organisations on the "non-essential" use of water.

Mr Boyd said: "In the short term it is good news in that there is less demand for water because the rain has fallen on people's cars, gardens and golf courses.

"We can also collect water from flooded rivers to store it in our reservoirs. It doesn't solve the drought but it is a short-term fix.

"It's too early to say if we've reached the end of the drought. Equally May might just be a blip within the drought. But we hope that's not the case."

A hosepipe ban was introduced in Oxfordshire on April 3 and was the first in 15 years.

The ban stops people using hosepipes in the garden or for washing cars.

Earlier this month Thames Water decided to ignore the Environment Agency's call for a drought order.