Born in Ireland to a well-connected family, he obtained the position of private secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Lower Canada in 1822.

In Canada, he acquired the nickname of "the perpetual secretary", in light of his holding various administrative offices for twenty-five years.

He entered federal politics and was a Cabinet minister in Sir John A. Macdonald's ministry, and later was appointed the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia.

After finishing his schooling, Daly spent some time with an uncle in Paris who was involved in banking, but came back to Ireland.

He then acquired the position of private secretary to Sir Francis Nathaniel Burton, Lieutenant Governor of Lower Canada, who was from an Irish family with political connections.

However, Daly was required to remit the salary for the post, £500 a year, to the former absentee office-holder, Thomas Amyot in England.

Aided by his Catholic background, he followed Burton's example of building good personal relations with the French Canadian elites, and acquired a reputation for diligence and integrity, coupled with affability and gallantry.

He expressed some sympathies for the concerns of the nationalists, but never took any formal position on the constitutional and political issues which underlay the Rebellion.

[1] Following the Rebellion, the British Parliament passed a law to suspend the 1791 constitution of Lower Canada.

However, in the new government of the Province of Canada, Lord Sydenham considered that the provincial secretary should be a member of the Legislative Assembly and the Executive Council.

[1][2][11][12] For the first two years of the union, the different groups in the Assembly and the Executive Council found Daly an acceptable colleague.

He applied himself with his normal diligence and considered that his role was to give advice in Council based on his long experience in government.

His tenacity in holding office earned him the nickname "the perpetual secretary", but he was nonetheless a popular and convivial character.

The Reformers, led by Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine from Canada East and Robert Baldwin from Canada West, were equally determined to implement the system of responsible government, where the governor would follow the advice of the Executive Council, drawn from the group which had the support of a majority in the elected Legislative Assembly.

LaFontaine, Baldwin, and the other members of the Executive Council resigned en masse in November 1843, with the exception of Daly.

The Council, composed of Daly, Draper and Viger, ran the government of the province for several months, under the direction of Metcalfe.

For the previous twenty years, he had served the governors appointed by the Crown, as a member of the public service.

The transition to a political office, as required by Sydenham, did not change his fundamental outlook, namely to support the governor who represented the Crown.

Daly had been re-elected in the Megantick riding, but resigned along with the rest of the outgoing members of the defeated government.

Elgin pointed out that Daly had been required to enter the political arena by Governor-General Sydenham, thereby risking his position as a public servant.

The premier, John Myrie Holl, resigned in accordance with the principle of responsible government, and was replaced by George Coles and the Liberals, who stayed in power for Daly's time on the Island.

Nonetheless, as in Canada, he quickly earned the respect and affection of the public, due to his charm, good nature and integrity.

Resolutions were passed by the two houses of the South Australian Parliament, urging the British government to remove Boothby.

Eventually, in 1867, Daly began proceedings under a British statute of 1782 to dismiss Boothby on grounds of misbehaviour.

Despite the intense heat, large crowds turned out to watch the funeral cortège pass, a tribute to the affection with which he was held.

South Australians had come to know him as a kindly and accessible gentleman, dedicated to his duty, and cheerfully impartial as governor.