John Browne (born 1 August 1948) is a former Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

politician. He was a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...

(TD) for the

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

constituency from 1982 to 2016. He is a former

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

. His most recent role was as Minister of State with special responsibility for Fisheries at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (2007–2008).

Early and private life

John Browne was born in Marshalstown,

County Wexford County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí Ceinns ...

in 1948. He was educated locally at St Mary's Christian Brothers School in

Enniscorthy Enniscorthy () is the second-largest town in County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. At the 2016 census, the population of the town and environs was 11,381. The town is located on the picturesque River Slaney and in close proximity to the ...

. Browne worked as a salesman and an oil truck driver before becoming involved in politics and also played

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

for the Wexford county team. Browne is married to Judy and they have three children, a fourth child now deceased. His uncle

Seán Browne Seán Browne (3 May 1916 – 27 March 1996) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wexford constituency – first elected in 1957. Early and personal life Browne was a prominent member of the GAA. He serv ...

, was also a TD, who was first elected in 1957. He retired due to ill health. John Browne topped the poll in the constituency of Wexford on a number of occasions.

Political career

Browne first became involved in politics in 1979 when he was elected to Enniscorthy Urban District Council and to

Wexford County Council Wexford County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Loch Garman) is the authority responsible for local government in County Wexford, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for hous ...

. Browne was first elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...

at the November 1982 general election for the constituency of

and has been re-elected at every election since. Over his career Browne has held a number of government and opposition positions. Not long after his election he was appointed assistant

Chief Whip The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes. United Kingdom ...

. When

returned to office in 1987 he remained on the backbenches. When

Albert Reynolds Albert Martin Reynolds (3 November 1932 – 21 August 2014) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1992 to 1994, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1992 to 1994, Minister for Finance from 1988 to 1991, Minister for Industry ...

became

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

in 1992, he appointed Browne as Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food with special responsibility for the Food Industry. When a new government was formed in January 1993, he was appointed as Minister of State at the Environment with special responsibility for Environmental Protection, serving in that position until 1994. In 1997,

returned to office; Browne, however, remained on the backbenches. In 2002 he was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources with special responsibility for the Marine. In a 2004 reshuffle,

Bertie Ahern Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008, Leader of the Opposition from 1994 to 1997, Tánaiste a ...

appointed Browne as Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food, with special responsibility for Forestry. In a junior ministerial reshuffle in February 2006, Browne was appointed again as Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources with special responsibility for the Marine. Browne has also served as chairman of a number of

Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...

Committees, including, Agriculture, Marine, Social Affairs, and Finance. After the 2007 general election, he was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food with special responsibility for Fisheries, serving in a similar role after a transfer of ministerial functions. On 13 May 2008, after

Brian Cowen Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011. Cowen was elected to Dáil Éireann in 1984, for the constituency of Laois–Offaly and served in a ...

became

, Browne was not appointed to any ministerial position. Browne was involved in controversy in November 2011 when it emerged that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform incorrectly paid him a pension from his time as a junior minister at the Department of Agriculture worth €7,396.31 despite still being a sitting TD. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform apologised to the TD for the embarrassment caused to him. Browne retired at the 2016 general election. His son James Browne was elected at that election, and in 2020, was appointed as a Minister of State.

References

External links

John Browne's page on the Fianna Fáil website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, John 1948 births Living people Fianna Fáil TDs Irish sportsperson-politicians Local councillors in County Wexford Members of the 24th Dáil Members of the 25th Dáil Members of the 26th Dáil Members of the 27th Dáil Members of the 28th Dáil Members of the 29th Dáil Members of the 30th Dáil Members of the 31st Dáil Ministers of State of the 26th Dáil Ministers of State of the 27th Dáil Ministers of State of the 29th Dáil Ministers of State of the 30th Dáil People from Enniscorthy Wexford inter-county hurlers