BUDAPEST, April 22 (Reuters) - Hungary's new government will open up the historical archives of its communist-era secret police, according to the ‌man who will run the office of Peter Magyar, winner ‌of this month's parliamentary election, who is expected to become prime minister on May ​9.

Magyar's centre-right Tisza party defeated veteran leader Viktor Orban's Fidesz on April 12 on pledges to put Hungary back on a pro-European course, revive a moribund economy, and secure the release of billions of euros in frozen ‌European Union funding.

Balint Ruff, ⁠confirmed by Magyar on Wednesday as his nominee to run the prime minister's office, told news site Valasz Online ⁠that opening up the secret police archives would be his "number one task".

"This is a task for historians, but I will be able to ensure that ​the next ​government provides a framework for this, ​that is, that it will ‌provide the opportunity to research without political pressure," said Ruff, a lawyer and political adviser.

Unlike Poland or the Czech Republic, Hungary has never officially revealed the names of communist-era secret police collaborators, though over the years some names have been dripped into the media.

Individuals can access their ‌own files but not, for example, materials ​about others, including past informants.

Historian Krisztian Ungvary, ​a vocal supporter of full ​transparency, said in a 2023 lecture that while "the past ‌of public figures is not public, ​they will constantly ​be vulnerable to blackmail by those with access to information about their past".

Ruff said he aimed to establish an office to recover ​billions of forints lost ‌to corruption and would also oversee EU affairs so that ​Magyar can closely oversee the work to unfreeze EU funds.

(Reporting ​by Anita KomuvesEditing by Gareth Jones)