Hungarian gay couple hoping for adoption breakthrough under new PM Magyar

By Krisztina Fenyo and Gergely Szakacs BUDAPEST, Sept 18 (Reuters) — A Hungarian gay couple who have been trying to adopt for years are hoping for a change in fortune after Prime Minister Peter Magyar started to roll back some curbs on LGBTQ rights enacted under right-wing former leader Viktor Orban. Adoption by gay and lesbian couples had been possible in Hungary, a European Union member state, if one partner applied as a single person. But under a law passed by Orban's Fidesz party in 2020, single people had to have their adoption requests approved by the family affairs minister, which has amounted to a ban. On Saturday, Magyar, who ousted Orban in April after 16 years in power, said his government would amend that legislation. Bence Lakatos, 36, and Jozsef Vanyovszki, 41, have been trying to adopt a child since 2021. "We didn't feel outright hostility, but when we first met social services it was clear they had an unspoken inclination that led us to infer that a decision would go against us," said Vanyovszki, who works in graphics design and online marketing. Their bid finally gained new momentum in August, when Lakatos, who works as a special needs teacher, was deemed fit to ad