Over his career Browne has held a number of government and opposition positions. Not long after his election he was appointed assistant Chief Whip. When Fianna Fáil returned to office in 1987 he remained on the backbenches. When Albert Reynolds became Taoiseach 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.