In 1698 Davenant returned to Parliament as a representative of Great Bedwyn; he became associated with the Tory party, which replaced the Whig Junto as the majority in Parliament. Davenant was linked to French agents in March 1701, and it was suspected, but not proved, that the French government tried to bribe him to promote their interests and to provide intelligence if England declared war on France. There is evidence that a French agent recommended bribing Davenant, but there is no evidence that "a bribe was ever actually offered or accepted."[4] The link with the French tarnished Davenant's public and political reputation.
In 1702 Queen Anne assumed the throne. The Junto Pembroke Ministry was removed from power, and Davenant's friends—Godolphin, Nottingham, and Harley—were placed in positions of power in the Coalition Ministry. In September 1702 Davenant was appointed to the Secretaryship of a commission to negotiate for the union of Scotland and England. In June 1703 he was appointed Inspector General of the Imports and Exports.
Davenant visited Holland in Autumn 1705, to research wartime traffic with France.
In 1710 Godolphin lost his office, which removed one of Davenant's supporters from power and threatened his position as Inspector General of the Imports and Exports. Davenant wrote Sir Thomas Double at Court and New Dialogues upon the Present Posture of Affairs to make amends with the Tory party, which was likely to be returning to power. Sir Thomas Double at Court reversed Davenant's argument for moderation in his 1703 Essays upon Peace at Home and War Abroad; and New Dialogues upon the Present Posture of Affairs repeated the attacks on the methods of financing public spending that he had been stating since 1689.[5] He also reversed his stance from Memorial Concerning the Free Trade now Tolerated between France and Holland and argued that the Dutch were benefitting from trade with France while "Britain bore the burden of the war.