“In virtually every life situation we stand alongside young people and families” – Katalin Novák appointed minister

Katalin Novák, the ‘face’ of family-support policy. This is no exaggeration. But not merely a ‘face’, not merely a symbol, but also the active and energetic initiator of and driving force behind these measures. 

When as a journalist I found myself in her office just after New Year’s Day, she showed me a picture on her phone with a certain measure of justifiable pride: this was the first time she had managed to bake really delicious macarons for her family for the holiday. She was fully aware that there are housewives for whom not only the political and social network is important, but also the family network that is interwoven through everyday life. During the interview she made no secret of her concern that two of their three children had started new schools where they had to perform to a far higher standard than previously and she found it difficult to arrange more time to help them cope with the new challenges. As a politician, Katalin Novák – even having achieved such an elevated position – has maintained contact with the real world, she has not lost her sense of the problems faced by ordinary people – and perhaps we are not greatly mistaken if we say that this is largely due to members of her family. In an earlier interview with Képmás magazine she formulated the correlation between practical political-economic decisions and social credibility thus:

“Credibility is enhanced when there are ever more of us among decision-makers who know from personal experience about the family way of life.”

The measures and achievements of the family support era hallmarked by the name of Katalin Novák encompass almost all social spheres affecting families today. The following is an abbreviated list of just some of the key measures: CSOK, the family housing allowance programme expanded in several stages so today it can be claimed not only by large families but also by families with a single child, and used not solely for new housing but also for buying or expanding second-hand dwellings; the sum of infant care allowance has increased; young newlyweds receive an allowance if they sign up to have children, which can also be claimed by widows and divorcees; mortgage repayments for large families have been cut; mothers with four or more children are totally exempt from income tax; childcare benefit (GYED) due to grandparents; continuous expansion of kindergarten and nursery school places; car purchase programme open to large families; child care home allowance introduced; the nursing care allowance has been increased; the childcare benefit has been increased; adoptive parents are entitled to all family benefits in exactly the same way as birth parents; infertility treatment has been made cheaper and more accessible.

Many symbolic and economic measures have sent the message to Hungarian citizens that establishing a commitment in love, getting married, starting and maintaining a family, working, having children and raising them conscientiously are good, valuable, socially useful and respectable actions and the way to live one’s life.

Some people consider the measures designed to promote the birth of loved children to be exaggerated or unnecessary, because they believe that the demographic trend within Hungary is already irreversible. Katalin Novák strongly rejects this attitude of surrender. “We can never put our hands up, what’s more, the demographic game is not over, there are many different scenarios and it is far from irrelevant which one becomes reality! One thing is certain: as long as Hungary has a civil government, it will work with all its strength and means to ensure that Hungary survives, and that it survives as a Hungarian country”, she stated to Képmás in an earlier interview.

Contrary to what some ‘green’ civil and political movements advertise, having children is not a nuisance for an overpopulated planet; instead, the acceptance of offspring gives purpose to all economic, technical and intellectual developments. “Today the fundamental principle is clear: the more children, the greater the level of support,” Katalin Novák said in summing up her endeavours in an interview given to our portal early this year. “Perhaps now Hungarians can really feel that those who are planning and expecting children can count on assistance. It is important that in every new life situation – if a brother or sister joins the family, if a child starts going to school, if a family would like a new home or would like to exchange their car – then it is well worth getting informed about the opportunities because in virtually every life situation we stand alongside young people and families, offering help.”

One doesn’t have to be particularly child-loving, religious, conservative or idealistic to understand the need for policies that rely on and support well-functioning families.

This can be realized when thinking using common sense and taking into consideration financial aspects. Katalin Novák put it like this: “As an economist, the formula is simple: if children are not born, then the Hungarian nation will simply decline and become ever weaker, we will disappear; but if we are to consider this from a more imminent perspective, then there will not be sufficient citizens to keep the elderly.”

One of the greatest successes in the career of the former state secretary, and at the same time perhaps one of her most uplifting moments, was the announcement of the Family Protection Action Plan – even though she didn’t announce it but instead Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, still it represented the highpoint so far of the work of Katalin Novák. She remembers it thus: “The announcement of the Family Protection Action Plan (despite me knowing what the prime minister was going to say) was for me a moving moment. I received feedback from many other places saying that others were similarly affected as they sat in front of their TV sets after the announcement. For us, the real work started after this.”

At the same time, symbolic and practical government measures send the message that there is no place for violence in the family: the institutional system providing assistance for victims of domestic abuse is constantly being expanded while the effectiveness of preventing and punishing violence is increasing. “Domestic violence is not a private matter. That something occurs behind closed doors is as much a crime as if it happened in full view of everyone,” said Katalin Novák when still a state secretary at the opening event (February 2020) of the Hungarian Interchurch Aid campaign. The National Crisis Management and Information Telephone Service (OKIT) can be contacted day and night, free of charge, over the past few years the number of safe houses offering refuge for victims has tripled, and a greater level of financial resources than any earlier government has been mobilized in order to put an end to domestic violence.

Katalin Novák does not call herself a feminist although conservative feminists have every right to view her as a representative – through her career and her deeds – of their movement.

She herself stated: “Yes, women must receive support. We do not want anyone to lose an opportunity just because they are a woman. The greatest challenge in the life of women is when family and work tasks clash. This is why we are trying to provide the greatest help here.”

Success is important for the new minister without portfolio, that is, that measures intended to help reach their target groups, and that they represent genuine and properly focused aid and encouragement for them. In order to achieve this, she pays close attention to feedback and it is no secret that measures are shaped accordingly. “Family policy is a little like football in that everyone has their own opinion about it. Which personally speaking I am pleased about because this ensures that feedback makes its way to us, we are then able to assess the claims, and in given cases we can insert them into the funding system,” she said in the interview given to kepmas.hu. “Stability of legislation and predictability are important but where necessary we respond sensibly and reasonably.”

The appointment of the minister without a portfolio suggests that Katalin Novák will be able to validate the greater responsibilities and wider opportunities associated with ministerial authority in the field of family support in the near future.