James Browne (born 15 October 1975) is an Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

politician who has served as Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage since January 2025. He has been a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the

Wexford Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...

constituency since

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. He previously served as a

Minister of State at the Department of Justice The Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration is a junior ministerial post in the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration of the Government of Ireland who performs duties and functions delegated by the M ...

from 2020 to 2025. Browne comes from a family of Fianna Fáil politicians. He is the only son of former TD John Browne. His grand uncle, Seán Browne, was also a TD. He studied hotel management and catering in Dublin IT before studying law in Waterford IT,

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

and

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns () is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environments. The Benchers of King's Inns aw ...

, where he qualified as a barrister. He was member of Enniscorthy Town Council from 2009 to 2014. He was a member of Wexford County Council from 2014 to 2016. At the 2016 general election, Browne was selected to replace his father John as a Fianna Fáil candidate for

, as he was retiring from politics. Browne was elected as a TD in this election, receiving 13.7% of the vote; however his running-mates Malcolm Byrne and Aoife Byrne were not elected. Browne opposed the repeal of the 8th amendment in 2018, which removed the ban on abortion in Ireland. On 2 September 2020, Browne was appointed by the

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

led by

Micheál Martin Micheál Martin (; born 16 August 1960) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician serving as Taoiseach since January 2025, having previously held the position from 2020 to 2022. Martin served as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Min ...

as a

with responsibility for law reform. He was assigned additional responsibility for civil justice and immigration from April to October 2021 during the

maternity leave Parental leave, or family leave, is an employee benefit available in almost all countries. The term "parental leave" may include maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; or may be used distinctively from "maternity leave" and "paternity leave ...

Helen McEntee Helen McEntee (born 8 June 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister for Education and Youth since January 2025 and Leader of Fine Gael#Deputy leaders, deputy leader of Fine Gael since October 2024. A Teachta Dála (TD) ...

. At the

2024 general election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

, Browne was re-elected to the Dáil. On 23 January 2025, Browne was appointed as Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

led by

. Browne is married and has two children.

References

External links

James Browne's page on the Fianna Fáil website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, James 1975 births Living people Fianna Fáil TDs Members of Wexford County Council Members of the 32nd Dáil Members of the 33rd Dáil Alumni of King's Inns Ministers of State of the 33rd Dáil Fianna Fáil local councillors Members of the 34th Dáil Housing ministers of Ireland