 He had better luck with Parliamentary selections in 1976 when he was chosen as Conservative candidate for Eton and Slough.At the 1976 Conservative Party conference, Ward opened the discussion on "People, Parliament and the Constitution", arguing that Britain was no longer a truly free society because the Labour government wanted a state-controlled society.At the 1979 general election, Ward faced an additional challenge when a rebel local Conservative councillor who had recently served as Mayor was nominated as an unofficial candidate.