Katalin Novák, Minister for Families, has highlighted that as the government expanded family benefits, the number of marriages and childbirths increased.
In a statement, the minister said the government has prioritized families over the past ten years. In no other European Union country, since 2010, has the desire to have children increased as much as in Hungary, she said. Interest abroad in Hungarian family policies is also growing, she said, adding that notwithstanding hardships brought about by the pandemic, trust in government to help people start a family and raise children remained unshaken. At almost 5 percent of GDP, the government spends the most on families in Europe. The last time the rate of marriages was so high in Hungary was in 1986, while the number of divorces has not been so low since 1962, the statement said.
The statement said that the number of marriages has almost doubled since 2010, while there are 37 percent fewer divorces, adding that readiness to have children has grown by nearly 24 percent. Novák said the government would continue to plough the returns of economic growth back to families. If economic growth exceeds an annual 5.5 percent, parents with children will have their taxes up to the level of the tax on the average wage returned to them, she added.