 In 1835 he stood both at Warrington (where he was defeated) and at Ashton (where he was elected); at all subsequent elections he was returned as Ashton's MP.In his early political life a Tory paper characterised him as a Durhamite Radical; he described himself as an avowed radical since "radicalism was the best security for liberty and for every institution worth preserving".His support for radicalism reflected the views of his supporters in Ashton (it was said that the only Parliamentary vote of his to give him any trouble with his constituency was his vote in favour of the annual allowance to the Queen Dowager