Not to be confused with Communist Party of Great Britain, Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist), or Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist).
The Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist–Leninist) (CPGB-ML) is a Marxist-Leninist political party based in the United Kingdom, specifically England, Scotland and Wales. It was founded in July 2004 by former members of the Socialist Labour Party who were expelled for supporting AES states, as well as some members of the original Communist Party of Great Britain. Today the party is the largest and most prominent Marxist-Leninist party in the United Kingdom, mostly due to its extensive online and media outreach and the prolific activities of its founder and former chairman, Harpal Brar; he has founded and run a number of pro-communist organisations, including the Indian Workers' Association and the Stalin Society. The party runs a bi-monthly magazine called Proletarian, as well as the YouTube channel "Proletarian TV" from which the party uploads its conferences, speeches from its members, pro-communist documentaries it does not own, and other similar material. Despite being staunchly anti-revisionist, the party still supports current-day China, so much so that Harpal Brar himself co-founded the Hands Off China campaign.
Criticisms
Political Nepotism
It should be stressed that, really, the CPGB-ML is essentially a dynasty ruled by the Brar family. Harpal and his two adult children, Joti and Ranjeet, are the figureheads of the party and pretty much do everything to run the show. While the intense fixation on Harpal has somewhat died down since he left the position of chairman for Ella Rule, it has instead been somewhat replaced by Joti Brar.
LGBT+ Issues
The CPGB-ML, however, is most infamous for its anti-LGBT+ stances. The central committee of the party is openly anti-trans, describing the concept of gender fluidity as a "reactionary nightmare" imposed by the bourgeoisie, and positing the validity of gender being biological to be "common sense". A 70-page pamphlet written by Joti and Ranjeet Brar specifically addressing the matter also makes extremely ridiculous stereotypes of transgender people, and the pamphlet itself cites the hostility towards LGBT+ people in the Soviet Union as justification for their own stances. Additionally, the party bans the promotion of what it calls "LGBT ideology". In short, the CPGB-ML is a homophobic, transphobic mess of a party that really cares more about glorifying its founding members more than actually serving the communist movement. If you are British, avoid this party at all costs.