Andy Brooks
Andy Brooks is General Secretary, New Communist Party of Britain. He was formerly a member of the Communist Party of Great Britain, and joined the NCP upon its foundation in 1977.
Symposium on founding of CCP
On 22 June 2021, The Chinese Embassy in the UK held a Symposium on the Centenary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China. H.E. Ambassador Zheng Zeguang delivered a keynote speech entitled Celebrate A Glorious Century and Create A More Splendid Future. General Secretary Robert Griffiths of the Communist Party of Britain, General Secretary Andy Brooks of the New Communist Party of Britain, Vice Chair Joti Brar of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist), Senior Fellow John Ross at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, Professor Kerry Brown, Director of the Lau China Institute of King's College London, spoke on the occasion. Over 30 participants, including Lord Sassoon, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, Liam Byrne MP, Lisa Cameron MP and other political party representatives, experts and scholars, joined the activity.[1]
Farewell to Ann Rogers
New Communist Party of Britain leaders joined other communists, trade unionists and peace activists to pay their last respects to Ann Rogers at her funeral in Ruislip last week. NCP leader Andy Brooks, together with Party Chair Alex Kempshall, and Daphne Liddle, Pat Abrahams and Peter Hendy from the Central Committee, paid tribute to the memory of a leading member of the NCP who was National Organiser and Editor of The New Worker during the turbulent times of the 1980s and 1990s when the very existence of the Party was at stake.
Throughout her life Ann worked tirelessly for peace and socialism in the union movement, CND and the NCP, and this was reflected in the solemn gathering at the Breakspear Crematorium in Middlesex last week. Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist) comrades Michael Chant and Chris Coleman were there, along with members of the Rogers family and many others who worked alongside Ann in local and national campaigns for peace and socialism.
The ceremony was opened by Kate Hobson from the Humanist Association, who focused on Ann’s life and her contribution to society that spanned the decades. Kate introduced Pat Abrahams and Daphne Liddle, who both spoke about Ann’s life as a communist and her ground-breaking work as Editor of The New Worker. Beryl Pankhurst, a personal friend and fellow Woodcraft Folk member followed on with memories of Ann’s life.[2]
2019 delegation to China
New Communist Party of Britain leader Andy Brooks and Peter Hendy from the Central Committee were part of the British communist contingent that included Robert Griffiths, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Britain, and a number of his comrades as well as some members of the CPGB (ML).[3]
NCP school
April 2017 Comrades looked at contemporary issues at the New Communist Party of Britain’s national weekend school at the Party Centre in London. Comrades from London, Southampton, Bristol, Llandudno and East Kilbride discussed the Juche idea, imperialism, and the role of bourgeois historians in three sessions chaired by Alex Kempshall and opened by Andy Brooks, Dermot Hudson and Ray Jones.
During the final day round-up session everyone said that there was a need for more seminars at a local and national level to help build the Party and the readership of the New Worker, our flagship paper.
It naturally ended with a collection, led by Daphne Liddle, for the New Worker fighting fund, which raised £67.50 for our communist weekly.[4]
North Korea London reception
September 2013 Communists and Korean solidarity activists joined diplomats, journalists and business-people at a lunch-time reception at the DPRK embassy that was opened by DPRK ambassador Hyong Hak Bong last week.
The leaders of the New Communist Party of Britain and the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist), Andy Brooks and Michael Chant, were there along with veteran London communist Monty Goldman from the Communist Party of Britain , who was jailed for two months for protesting against the Korean War, as well as Daphne Liddle, the joint editor of The New Worker, and Dermot Hudson from the UK Korean Friendship Association.
The event, at the south London headquarters of the RCPB (ML) kicked off with a spirited rendition of the DPRK national anthem and the Song of Kim Il Sung by the violinist Leslie Larkum, who has recently visited Democratic Korea. This was followed by the screening of a documentary covering the recent visit of a RCPB (ML) delegation to Democratic Korea produced by one of their own comrades.
Comrades heard lively eye-witness reports from comrades who took part in the recent 60th anniversary celebration in the DPRK of the Korean people’s victory in the Fatherland Liberation War in July. Michael Chant, Leslie Larkum and Dermot Hudson painted a vivid picture of Democratic Korea which is led by Kim Jong Un and guided by Marxism-Leninism and the Juché Idea and also determined to struggle for reunification and defend its socialist path.
Other friends of Korea, like John McLeod of the Socialist Labour Party and Theo Russell of the New Communist Party of Britain, who have also been to north Korea, joined in a general discussion that ended with an appeal from Hyong Hak Bong for everyone to go to the DPRK, if they can, and see for the new life for the Korean people with their own eyes.[5]
"Marxism in China"
New Communist Party of Britain leader Andy Brooks took part in a seminar with other communists, academics and labour movement leaders at the Chinese embassy in London last week, held to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China in Shanghai in 1921.
Around the theme of Marxism in China, the participants discussed the historic links between the British and Chinese people and the role of the Communist Party of China in liberating the country and leading the people’s republic into the 21st century.
Ambassador Liu Xiaoming opened the seminar with a keynote speech in which he said “Marxism became the choice of the Chinese people following a painstaking journey of exploration and perseverance since the second half of the 19th century,” in an opening that swept across the struggle of the Chinese communist movement over the decades to achieve liberation and practice and develop Marxism following the establishment of the people’s government in 1949.
“In 1921 the CPC started with 50 members,” he said. “Today, 90 years after its birth the CPC has become the world's largest ruling party with over 80 million members. Over the same period, China has been utterly transformed. In 1921 China was a poor, weak and underdeveloped country. Today, 90 years on, China is the second largest global economy. The Chinese people, once on the verge of crisis, are well on the path toward a great rejuvenation.”
Ambassador Liu was followed by openings from a panel that included historian and Labour MP Tristram Hunt, John Callow from the Marx Memorial Library, Graham Stevenson, who is president of the European Transport Workers’ Federation, Communist Party of Britain general secretary Robert Griffiths and Keith Bennett from the 48 Group Club, established in the early 1950s by progressive British businessmen to promote trade with the People’s Republic.[6]
Marx Memorial
March 2010, a New Communist Party of Britain delegation joined other communists and progressives in saluting the memory of Karl Marx at the annual ceremony in Highgate Cemetery in north London. Marx died in his study at half-past two on the afternoon of Wednesday 14th March 1883. To commemorate his passing the Marx Memorial Library has for many decades held an annual graveside oration at his burial place in Highgate Cemetery at the exact moment of his death.
NCP leaders Andy Brooks and Alex Kempshall, along with Robert Laurie, Daphne Liddle and Theo Russell from the Central Committee and New Worker supporter Owen Liddle, represented the New Communist Party of Britain and the turnout included Library committee members and delegations from the London embassies of socialist countries, including Cuba, People’s China, Vietnam and the DPR Korea, many of whom laid flowers at the grave.
This year the address was given by Alex Gordon, President of the National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers (RMT) who said: “We are meeting today as monopoly capital and the forces of so-called ‘globalisation’ face yet another deep crisis. Conversely, this has awakened new interest in the ideas of Karl Marx, which have proved much more resilient than the forces of imperialist globalisation have claimed hitherto”.[7]
Friends of Korea
“The world is full of distorted information about Korea,” Comrade Jong In Song from the Embassy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea told a north London seminar June 2006.
The seminar was organised by the Friends of Korea coordinating committee and chaired by Harpal Brar with a platform that included Andy Brooks of the New Communist Party of Britain, Michael Chant of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist); Godfrey Kramer of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) and Dermot Hudson from the British Juche Society.
And it took place against a background of rising threats from the United States concerning DPRK plans to test a missile.Comrade Jong continued: “Why are the Americans currently attacking Korea?”he asked.
“Today is the 56th anniversary of the start of the US war against Korea –the Fatherland Liberation War. Why do we still commemorate this year? And why is the western press still hostile to the DPRK?”
Comrade Jong gave a detailed account of the events leading up to the war that began in 1950. This was just five years after the Korean people, led by Kim Il Sung had thrown out the Japanese imperialist occupation forces.[8]
NCP weekend school in London
New Communist Party of Britain members, friends and supporters October 2007 attended a school at Party Centre in London to discuss fascism, the state, developments in Latin America and the effects of neo-colonialism in Africa. All the sessions were chaired by NCP general secretary Andy Brooks. Neil Harris on Saturday morning gave an opening, full of detailed facts and figures, of the class and economic forces behind fascism.
In the afternoon Daphne Liddle gave an account of the nature of the state machine in class society and traced the development of the state in Britain, especially from 1668 onwards.
On the Sunday morning Theo Russell spoke on the progressive developments in Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and the rest of the South American continent and new left-wing governments defying the military and economic power of the United States.
And on the Sunday afternoon Explo Nani Kofi of the African Liberation and Solidarity Campaign spoke on the way in which neo-colonialism subverts and corrupts governments on that continent – and how the western media gives a distorted and partial picture of what is happening.[9]
Remembering Karl Marx
Karl Marx was remembered by comrades and friends at the New Communist Party of Britain’s London Centre last March 2007 at a reception to mark the 124th anniversary of the passing of the founder of scientific socialism.
Comrade Jong In Song from the Democratic Korean embassy in London spoke of the contribution Marx made to the world struggle for freedom together with Judith Amanthis of the African Liberation Support Campaign ; Prof Mohammed Arif of the British Afro Asian Solidarity Organisation and Ella Rule for Friends of Korea.
Marx’s role in the communist movement was high-lighted by Michael Chant of the Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist–Leninist) and Harpal Brar of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) and NCP leader Andy Brooks recalled Marx’s work in London.[10]
2004 delegation to China
A delegation from the New Communist Party of Britain returned to Britain 2004 after spending two weeks in People’s China. General Secretary Andy Brooks, National Chair Alex Kempshall and National Treasurer Dolly Shaer held talks with the Communist Party of China, Chinese trade union leaders, academics and officials from local and municipal governments during a visit that included Beijing, Nanjing, Guizhou province in western China and the southern city of Shenzhen.[11]