 He was elected at the 1950 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham Central, a marginal constituency which the sitting Labour MP Geoffrey de Freitas had abandoned for the promising Lincoln seat.He held the seat at the 1951 general election with a majority of only 139 votes, but lost it at the 1955 election to the Conservative candidate John Cordeaux.He contested Nottingham Central again at the 1959 general election, but Cordeaux held the seat with an increased majority.