Er behielt diese Rolle trotz der Spaltung der Whigs 1717, wo er sich der Walpole-Townshend-Allianz anschloss und sich plötzlich in Opposition zur damaligen Regierung befand. ###>He maintained the role despite the split in the Whigs in 1717 in which he joined the Walpole-Townshend alliance and found himself in opposition to the government of the day.