Billy Mackie Snedden was born on 31 December 1926. Educated in Perth, he left school at an early age to work as a law clerk for the firm of Hardwicke, Slattery and Gibson. He later worked for the Commonwealth Crown Solicitor, before joining the Royal Australian Air Force as an aircrew trainee for a short period before the end of World War II (January-September 1945). 

As a result of his war service, Snedden was able to study under the Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme. He gained a law degree from the University of Western Australia and, while there, joined the University Young Liberals Club. He was later President of the Western Australian Young Liberals. In 1952, Snedden became a migrant selection officer for the Commonwealth Department of Immigration and was posted to Italy and then England. On his return to Australia, he entered legal practice in Melbourne. He was admitted to the Supreme Court of Western Australia in 1951 and the Supreme Court of Victoria in 1955.

Prior to entering Federal Parliament, Snedden stood unsuccessfully for the Western Australian state seat of Boulder (1948), won pre-selection for, but was not elected to the federal seat of Fremantle (1949) and unsuccessfully contested the federal seat of Perth (1951). In 1955, he became the Liberal member for the Victorian seat of Bruce in the Federal Parliament. He retained the seat until resigning in April 1983, one month after the defeat of the Liberal-Country Party Coalition Government.

Snedden's early Parliamentary career included service as a member of the House of Representatives Privileges Committee (1959-63), Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs (1962-63), Federal Executive Council (1963-72) and later, the House of Representatives Standing Orders Committee (1967-71). His first portfolio was that of Attorney-General in the Menzies-Holt Government (1964-66). In 1965 he piloted the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill through the House, and also chaired the Commonwealth Law Ministers' Conference held in Canberra. In May 1966 he was a delegate to the London Conference.

In the Holt and Gorton Governments, Snedden was Leader of the House (1966-71) and held the portfolios of Immigration (1966-69) and then Labour and National Service (1969-71). As Minister for Immigration, his policy was to bring a large number of migrants to Australia. To achieve this he made an agreement with Italy and the first formal agreement with Turkey and Yugoslavia.

On the death of Harold Holt, Snedden stood for election as Leader of the Liberal Party but was eliminated at the outset with only three votes; Gorton was elected. After the leadership crisis of 1971, when McMahon successfully challenged Gorton and became Leader of the Liberal Party, Snedden was appointed Treasurer in the McMahon Government (1971-72). His first budget was brought down on 17 August 1971, the day he was elected Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party. He introduced his second budget in April 1972.
 
When Whitlam's Labour Government came to office in 1972, Snedden became Leader of the Liberal Party and of the Parliamentary Opposition. He survived a challenge to his leadership from Malcolm Fraser in November 1974, but finally lost to Fraser in March 1975 on the issue of supply to the Whitlam Government. Fraser offered Snedden a position in his Shadow Cabinet, with responsibility for Commonwealth-State relations, local government and tax sharing arrangements, but no portfolio was attached and Snedden declined.

In November 1975, following the dismissal of the Labour Government, Snedden intimated that if a Cabinet posting was offered to him he would accept; however, Fraser did not include him in his first Ministry. Instead, Snedden was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives (1976-83).

Sir Billy Snedden was made a Queen's Counsel (QC) in 1964, a Privy Councillor (PC) in 1972 and a Knight Commander of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (KCMG) in 1978. He died on 27 June 1987.

Sources:
Who's Who in Australia 1983, 24th ed, p 795