The government has considered churches its strategic partners ever since it entered into power in 2010 and will continue to support them, the finance minister said in Debrecen, in eastern Hungary, addressing a church renovation project’s closing ceremony. The Tiszántúl Diocese of the Reformed Church has spent a total of 50 billion forints (EUR 121m) on church renovation projects over the past twelve years, Mihály Varga said at the event. Under a project dubbed Orando et Laborando, the renovation of six churches has been carried out with the EU’s 1.5 billion forint non-refundable support, the minister said. He noted that the government has supported the construction and renovation of more than 3,000 churches in Hungary and another 860 in neighbouring countries with the provision of 220 billion forints since 2010.