Holmes was a chartered accountant and company director. He served as vice-president of the
Building Societies Association and was a member of the
London County Council 1910 to 1919. He was elected Liberal
Member of Parliament for
North East Derbyshire at the
1918 general election, but narrowly lost the seat at the
1922 general election. The initially declared majority was only 5 votes, and an electoral petition was lodged. The petition was dismissed when a recount found a higher majority of 15. and in
Cheltenham at the
1924 election. He finally returned to the
House of Commons after a thirteen-year absence at the
1935 general election, when he was elected for
Harwich as a
Liberal National. He held the seat until 1954, sitting later as a 'National Liberal and Conservative'. He introduced as
Private Member's Bills the Inheritance (Family Provision) Act 1938 and the Coast Protection Act 1939. On 18 January 1954 he was elevated to the peerage as
Baron Dovercourt, of Harwich in the County of Essex. ==Personal life==