Kenilworth's MP has called on ministers to "finish the job" and get HS2 sorted.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Conservative MP Sir Jeremy Wright renewed his calls for the line to extend to Manchester, saying the project will not have been worth the local "pain" if it does not.

The MP for Kenilworth and Southam's words come as rumours that the line will not extend beyond Birmingham refuse to go away.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has yet not committed to the link to the North West amid rising costs on the multi-billion-pound project.

But Sir Jeremy said South Warwickshire residents have been told to put up with the interference and problems caused by the construction for the "national gain".

"I want the Government to finish the job," he said on Saturday (September 30).

"My constituents are undergoing the pain now of the delivery of Phase 1 of HS2 and they have been told all the way through this project…that the significant local pain they will be suffering is justified by the significant national game that building a network of high speed rail lines will deliver.

"And I don't think that gain, that advantage strategically to the nation, comes from a single line that runs from London to Birmingham.

"So I think it is important, not just for my constituents but from the strategic point of view, that we complete the network at least as far as Manchester, and I hope one day beyond that.

"We need to finish it in a way that delivers its intended benefits."

Sir Jeremy said the impact on the local environment in South Warwickshire can not be undone (image via SWNS)

The former attorney general blamed some of the rising costs on "bad management" but also conceded that some had come from his (and others) campaigning for tunnels for the line rather than more cuttings.

He said he was "unapologetic" about that, and also said many people have been concerned about the costs since the start of the project.

"We knew this was a big and expensive project," he added. 

"But keep in mind that we have already started in my constituency, homes have been demolished, trees have been cut down, ancient woodland is gone. 

"All that has been done cannot be undone. 

"We started this project, we need to finish it, in a way that delivers its intended benefits."

Locally HS2 has just been given the green light for another 1.9km cutting, as it continues to develop the line around Kenilworth.

Residents have also just been forced to put up with the first of a two-month closure of Dalehouse Lane, which could eventually last for over a year.

Sir Jeremy was also clear that he does not feel that HS2 will actually bring any real travel benefits to people in Kenilworth and Southam.