However, Parker was popular among the profession as he secured improvements in judicial salaries and pensions. Parker was a mild reformer who supported legal aid and tried to modernise some judicial procedures which he thought were antiquated, such as the assize court system. Like Goddard, Parker took an active part in House of Lords debates. The most important speech he made was in debates during the passage of the War Damage Act 1965 which has the effect of retrospectively overturning the judicial decision of the House of Lords in Burmah Oil Co. v Lord Advocate thereby depriving the plaintiff of an award of damages. Parker regarded this as an abhorrent idea in principle, but his view did not carry the day. He supported moves to abolish the death penalty.