Move aimed at boosting the country's population and reducing immigration

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban has promised that women who have four or more children will never pay income tax again, in a move aimed at boosting the country's population and reducing immigration.

On Sunday, Orban announced a number of measures to support larger families including favorable mortgage terms for families with multiple children, support for families with three or more children to buy a car, and increased funding for daycare centers and kindergartens.

Orban has declared the main focus of his current term in office to be the demographic situation, and his government launched a "public consultation" last year, mailing questionnaires with a number of leading questions about migration and family policy to every Hungarian household.

The leader is seen as one of the most outspoken critics of mass immigration to Europe from the Middle East and Asia, and has stated that he aims to keep economic growth 2 percentage points over the European Union average despite an expected global slowdown.

Orban's ruling Fidesz party faces European Parliament and local government elections this year after a string of protests in recent months against the 55-year-old premier's rule, although the party still leads in opinion polls.

Demonstrations were sparked in December when a passage of law allowed employers to ask for up to 400 hours of overtime per year.

The law is seen as another result of the demographic problems in the country, as a labor shortage means jobs cannot be filled. Political opposition to Orban is divided, however, and the protest momentum appears to have diminished.

There is concern too about the creation of new administrative courts that will answer to the government and oversee sensitive issues.

"There are fewer and fewer children born in Europe. For the West, the answer (to that challenge) is immigration. For every missing child there should be one coming in and then the numbers will be fine," Orban said.

"But we do not need numbers. We need Hungarian children," he said, announcing the incentives program.

Women below 40 who marry for the first time will be eligible for a 10 million forint ($36,000) subsidized loan, Orban said. A third of the debt will be forgiven when a second child is born and the entire loan waived after the third child.

Contact the writer at jonathan@mail.chinadailyuk.com