The paper was first published in 1993, having developed out of "The Leninist", the eponymous underground publication of the left group opposed to the Euro-communist leadership of the by then dissolved Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB). The group was defined by their adherence to orthodox Soviet Marxism and their strong opposition to Euro-communism within the former CPGB. This found primary expression in their stance towards the Soviet Union, where they denounced Mikhail Gorbachev's reforms and the developments within the Warsaw Pact. The party's position was as rigorous to lead the group to publish denouncements of the Polish Solidarność trade union for agitation against the workers regime. Such positioning was charactured by the nickname "Tankies".