Labour MPs would be wrong to remove Keir Starmer, even though voters have given the party a “real kicking” at the ballot box and people feel “bitterly let down”, the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson , has said. Phillipson said Labour had been “too gloomy” and had made a mistake in trying to withdraw the winter fuel allowance, after the party lost control of about 40 councils and 1,500 seats at the local elections on Thursday. However, she said a leadership challenge from the Labour backbencher Catherine West would be “completely wrong”. West, a former minister, said she would begin collecting the 80 necessary names for a challenge on Monday. She is not widely considered a viable candidate herself but if she triggers a contest then other contenders such as Wes Streeting, Angela Rayner or Ed Miliband could come forward. A contest in the coming weeks would rule out a return for Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, who is not in parliament.…