Philip Snowden was Member of Parliament for Blackburn from 1906 – 1918. From 1922 – 1931 he was Member of Parliament for Colne Valley. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer, the first Labour Chancellor, in the Labour Government formed by Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929.

He worked for the Independent Labour Party and was twice chairman of the party, from 1903 to 1906 and later from 1917 to 1920. He resigned in 1927 in favour of the Labour Party proper as a protest against what he considered the revolutionary tendencies of the Independent Labour Party. He belonged to the pacifist minority of the socialist group during World War One.

Following his defeat in the 1918 General Election, Philip Snowden remained as the Parliamentary Candidate although the Independent Labour Party were keen to secure a safer seat for him at the 1922 General Election. Correspondence flowed between the General Secretary of the ILP, Francis Johnson and the Blackburn agent George Eddie and also that of Philip Snowden who indicated his desire to do what was best for the local party.