The consolidated financial statements of the Holy See for 2011 closed with a deficit of €14,890,034. It was announced by the Holy See Press Office in a statement - released today – giving details about the meeting of the Council of Cardinals for the Study of the Organisational and Economic Problems of the Holy See held in the Vatican from 3 to 4 July, under the presidency of Vatican Secretary of State Card. Tarcisio Bertone. “The most significant items of expenditure – the statement reads - were those relative to personnel (who as of 31 December 2011 numbered 2,832) and to the communications media considered as a whole”. The deficit was further aggravated by “the negative trend of global financial markets, which made it impossible to achieve the goals laid down in the budget”. The financial statements for 2011 of the Governorate, whose administration is autonomous and independent of contributions from the Holy See, closed with a surplus of €21,843,851. The number of staff employed is 1,887. “A particularly significant contribution” to this result - the Holy See pointed out - came from the Vatican Museums, which “produced a revenue that passed from €82,400,000 in 2010 to €91,300.000” in 2011, for a total of more than five million visitors. According to specialised rankings, these figures place the Vatican Museums “among the most prestigious and important such institutions in the world”. (continued)

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