Shropshire residents are to be given a say on the impact of HS2 construction work on road traffic and the environment.

Peers have inflicted a defeat on the Government in demanding further public consultation on the next stage of the high-speed rail line between the West Midlands and Crewe.

The House of Lords backed by 276 votes to 259, majority 17, a Labour move that requires the views of residents in Shropshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire to be sought on the impact of HS2 construction work on road traffic and the environment, with a report to Parliament.

The consultation exercise will also look at whether local transport links with the high-speed network are sufficient and if not to consider improvements, including the building of new railway stations and the reopening of lines.

Supporters of the amendment at report stage of the High Speed Rail (West Midlands-Crewe) Bill said residents felt they had not been listened to by HS2, with previous engagement seen as a "tick-box exercise".

However, ministers opposed the measure, arguing there had been extensive consultation over a number of years and this would continue.

Labour peer Lord Rosser said consultation with residents close to the planned route "appears at times to have been sparse".

He added: "It is very easy to regard consultation as an exercise in telling people what is gong to happen rather than listening to their views and concerns and seeking to address or mitigate them."

However, there was criticism from within Labour's own ranks over the opposition proposal.

Indicating he would not support it, Labour peer Lord Rooker said: "It's almost a wrecking amendment."

But backing the move, Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Randerson said: "HS2 has come in for criticism about the quality of their consultation."

Responding, Tory transport minister Baroness Vere of Norbiton told peers there had been "a huge amount of consultation".

She said the Labour amendment would "mandate just one more round".

"It's like one more wafer-thin mint," she added - a reference to the fictional character Mr Creosote in Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life, where an obese man keeps being served food.

She added: "I do agree that HS2 Ltd must engage with and consult local communities not once, not twice, but on an ongoing basis, before, during and after the project."

But Lady Vere went on: "We have to draw the line somewhere. Whilst I am fully in favour of constantly communicating and engaging with people, I am not sure that asking them similar questions again and again is particularly productive."

Earlier, the Government narrowly avoided a defeat at the hands of peers determined to see the planned high-speed rail network continue to Sheffield and Leeds.

An amendment aimed at committing ministers to legislating for the eastern leg of HS2 from the West Midlands was rejected by 274 votes to 265, Government majority nine.

Labour former transport secretary Lord Adonis had warned it would be a "short-sighted catastrophe" if ministers were to cancel or severely delay this part of the HS2 project.