Leigh Sparks
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sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks
@sparksstirling.bsky.social
560 followers 1K following 220 posts

Professor of Retail Studies, University of Stirling, Chair Scotland's Towns Partnership, Fellow Royal Society of Edinburgh, Extremely long-suffering Welsh rugby fan, occasional gardener.

Stirlingretail.com

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Business 69%
Economics 13%
Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

parodypm.bsky.social
Parody Nigel Farage @parodypm.bsky.social · 11h
Here is David Coburn, the former UKIP MEP who was mentioned in WhatsApp messages between the traitor Nathan Gill and his Russian paymaster, saying there was cash available for Coburn.
Needless to say, I have never met the man.

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 14h
Really great news that Glasgow businesses have voted so strongly in favour of establishing a BID.

Will be the largest in Scotland.

www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/2565888...
Glasgow businesses set up new body to help boost city centre streets
Businesses have voted in favour of setting up a new venture to fund improvements Glasgow city centre.
www.glasgowtimes.co.uk

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 15h
😀

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 15h
Remind me. The AGM is when, so the accounts due ....

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

stevepeers.bsky.social
Steve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 19h
Former Farage party MEP denies taking money from pro-Russian campaign www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Former Brexit Party MEP denies taking payment from pro-Russian campaign
A prominent former MEP for Nigel Farage's old party denies taking bribes in a pro-Russian campaign.
www.bbc.co.uk

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

fascinatorfun.bsky.social
Fionna O’Leary @fascinatorfun.bsky.social · 19h
Very much enjoying this BBC article explaining how David Coburn, Nathan Gill’s fellow MEP who acted as an echo chamber for Gill’s Ukraine position, is now another bloody immigrant living in his “chateau in France” (but took no 🇷🇺 money)

His Wiki page is worth a read

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Former Brexit Party MEP denies taking payment from pro-Russian campaign
A prominent former MEP for Nigel Farage's old party denies taking bribes in a pro-Russian campaign.
www.bbc.co.uk

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 20h
BBC News - Scotland has 33 new towns. Where are they and what's it like living there? - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Based on the updated Understanding Scottish Places tool launched yesterday.

See my post today at

stirlingretail.com/2025/11/28/u...
Scotland has 33 new towns. Where are they and what's it like living there?
BBC Scotland visits Tarves in Aberdeenshire - one of 33 places which are no longer villages after seeing their populations swell.
www.bbc.co.uk

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 20h
My post today is on the launch of the updated Understanding Scottish Places (USP) website and tools, yesterday at the @scotlandstowns.bsky.social Annual Conference.

Second post next week will provide some analysis and discussion.

stirlingretail.com/2025/11/28/u...
Understanding Scottish Places (USP): Major Update Released
Understanding Scottish Places (USP) took shape in the early 2010s. It aimed to provide a consistent space to compare towns and to kickstart discussions in those places, local authorities and others…
stirlingretail.com

Reposted by Leigh Sparks, Mark Priestley

malcolm55.bsky.social
Malcolm Mair @malcolm55.bsky.social · 21h
Is it any surprise that the Welsh leader of Reform (former UKIP MEP) having taken money from the Russians, that now they are investigating the Scottish UKIP leader (from that period) for the same offence.
Brexit was what Putin wanted in order to weaken the UK.

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 22h
Understanding Scottish Places (USP): Major Update Released

Understanding Scottish Places (USP) took shape in the early 2010s. It aimed to provide a consistent space to compare towns and to kickstart discussions in those places, local authorities and others, about strategy and development. It was…
Understanding Scottish Places (USP): Major Update Released
Understanding Scottish Places (USP) took shape in the early 2010s. It aimed to provide a consistent space to compare towns and to kickstart discussions in those places, local authorities and others, about strategy and development. It was intended as a conversation-starter to begin discussion and then provoke action on the (local) town. It also actively tried to move the discussion on from pejorative labelling of places and unhelpful league tables.
stirlingretail.com

Reposted by Leigh Sparks, Terry Gourvish, Pam Jarvis

carolecadwalla.bsky.social
Carole Cadwalladr @carolecadwalla.bsky.social · 23h
‘Speaking outside his chateau in France, former Brexit Party and UKIP MEP Coburn answered "no" when a BBC journalist asked him whether he had ever been paid to give a speech to promote pro-Russian campaigners.’

Great work from @BBCWales. Keep going

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 23h
BBC News - Scotland has 33 new towns. Where are they and what's it like living there? - BBC News
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

@stir.ac.uk

Updated Understanding Scottish Places launched with revised data usp.scot
Scotland has 33 new towns. Where are they and what's it like living there?
BBC Scotland visits Tarves in Aberdeenshire - one of 33 places which are no longer villages after seeing their populations swell.
www.bbc.co.uk

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

thebossross.bsky.social
TheBossRoss @thebossross.bsky.social · 1d
Why the #press pool isn't walking out after any of his answers is frankly beyond me.

Why do you cover his lies & take his bullying, incitement, rants, & insults?

Take a stand. Stand by the truth. Uphold journalism standards. Defend your colleagues. #WalkOut, #media.
Aaron Rupar @atrupar tweeted from an aired press even with Trump: REPORTER: Officials say the suspect in the DC shooting was vetted and it came up clean TRUMP: He went cuckoo. He went nuts. There was no vetting REPORTER: Actually, your DOJ IG just reported that there was thorough vetting of Afghans who were brought into the US. So why do you blame Biden? TRUMP: Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person? You're just asking questions because you're a stupid person 1:40 AM, Nov 28, 2025 Aaron Rupar@atrupar tweeted from the same event: Q: Do you plan to attend Sarah's funeral? TRUMP: I haven't thought about it yet, but it's certainly something I can conceive of. I love West Virginia. You know, I won West Virginia by one of the biggest margins of any president anywhere.

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

neilretail.com
Neil Saunders @neilretail.com · 1d
🇬🇧 UK retailers urge faster end to tax break on low-value imported goods www.theguardian.com/business/202...
UK retailers urge faster end to tax break on low-value imported goods
Primark, Currys and Boohoo criticise government for waiting until 2029 to phase out exemption on customs duty
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Ben H. Ansell, Will Jennings , and 6 more

robertsaunders.bsky.social
Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 1d
Headline on The World at One just now:

"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".

Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

gwladrugby.bsky.social
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Gwladrugby 🏉 @gwladrugby.bsky.social · 1d
#RoadToWRUin Day 9:

The WRU have always been like Emperor Nero - fiddling away while everything around them is on fire. Their constant dithering over the future has led to massive and damaging uncertainty across the game. For example:

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

gwladrugby.bsky.social
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Gwladrugby 🏉 @gwladrugby.bsky.social · 2d
They've used Portas more than once, so it's likely to be significant. But maybe not significant enough to appear in any financial reporting. I'd particularly like to see how much they paid the PR firm who created that execrable consultation "survey" they're placing so much store on.

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 2d
Exceeding an average four times in a row is quite the feat in four data points

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 3d
"Asked why he had been taken off the Palestine Action case, the Ministry of Justice referred the Guardian to the judiciary press office, which refused to comment."

Simply unacceptable behaviour. Have the guts to explain or don't do it.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Removal of judge in Palestine Action ban legal challenge ‘deeply concerning’
Unusual last-minute change means panel of three will now hear case rather than Mr Justice Chamberlain
www.theguardian.com

sparksstirling.bsky.social
Leigh Sparks @sparksstirling.bsky.social · 3d
ICYMI: My recent post on the shops and ghostsigns of Whitby, with an added bit on the Flying Scotsman at Grosmont

stirlingretail.com/2025/11/24/w...

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

historicshopfronts.bsky.social
Dr Lindsay Lennie @historicshopfronts.bsky.social · 4d
Not been to Whitby for a while but remember it having some interesting shopfronts.
The Spanton 1930s frontage is excellent.

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

Reposted by Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Leigh Sparks , and 1 more

emptywheel.bsky.social
emptywheel @emptywheel.bsky.social · 4d
I've said since Trump picked on Mahmoud Khalil that he was picking his political martyrs poorly.

But this one...
Mark Kelly tweet, showing his medals on a dress uniform, reading: When I was 22 years old, I commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy and swore an oath to the Constitution. I upheld that oath through flight school, multiple deployments on the USS Midway, 39 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm, test pilot school, four space shuttle flights at NASA, and every day since I retired – which I did after my wife Gabby was shot in the head while serving her constituents. In combat, I had a missile blow up next to my jet and flew through anti-aircraft fire to drop bombs on enemy targets. At NASA, I launched on a rocket, commanded the space shuttle, and was part of the recovery mission that brought home the bodies of my astronaut classmates who died on Columbia. I did all of this in service to this country that I love and has given me so much. Secretary Hegseth’s tweet is the first I heard of this. I also saw the President’s posts saying I should be arrested, hanged, and put to death. If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs and holding this administration accountable, it won’t work. I’ve given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies who care more about their own power than protecting the Constitution.

Reposted by Leigh Sparks, Margot C. Finn, Leslie Mabon , and 3 more

pippacrerar.bsky.social
Pippa Crerar @pippacrerar.bsky.social · 4d
“I would never ever do it in a hurtful or insulting way”

Nigel Farage responds to allegations of racist behaviour from when he was a teenager at school

@itvnewspolitics.bsky.social

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

gwladrugby.bsky.social
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Gwladrugby 🏉 @gwladrugby.bsky.social · 4d
Hang it from a lamp post.

Coming to a stadium near you.... soon.

Reposted by Leigh Sparks, Peter Holmes, Jonathan Hopkin , and 2 more

yougov.co.uk
YouGov @yougov.co.uk · 4d
With Rachel Reeves reportedly set to apply a new tax on tuition fees paid by overseas students, most Britons support such a move at the previously mooted level of 6%

Support: 57%
Oppose: 18%

yougov.co.uk/topics/socie...

Reposted by Lisa W. Fazio, Suresh Venkatasubramanian, Brendan Nyhan , and 9 more

cwarzel.bsky.social
Charlie Warzel @cwarzel.bsky.social · 4d
I wrote about the fake account blowup on X this weekend. A genuine post-truth nightmare and proof that these companies have polluted their platforms so thoroughly and traded reality for profit that they've undermined the very idea of what the internet is supposed to be.
That MAGA Account Might Be a Troll From Pakistan
How X blew up its own platform with a new location feature
www.theatlantic.com

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

ottoenglish.bsky.social
Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 4d
The A55 upgrade received tens of millions from YUP you guessed it EU funding as part of the Trans European Transport Network.

So yes, sure, turn up and listen to him witter on ... and vote for him if you want Wales... but he's done NOTHING for you and never ever will.

Whereas the EU did loads.
a welsh flag with a red dragon on it
ALT: a welsh flag with a red dragon on it
media.tenor.com

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

ottoenglish.bsky.social
Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 4d
In the unlikely event that Farage arrived by train he will have gone to Llandudno station - renovated courtesy of the £21.5 million contributed by the EU to the Wales Station Improvement Programme started in 2005.

If he drove then he'd have gone on the coastal stretch of the A55 ...guess what folks

Reposted by Leigh Sparks

ottoenglish.bsky.social
Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 4d
Farage is speaking at Venue Cymru tonight.

Last revamped in 2018 with £1.8 million of EU development money and another £1 million in business development cash.

Original development also received significant EU funding.

Farage, by contrast, will give Llandudno nothing but hot air and lies.