The Church has made a financial turnaround from a loss of more than €3.5 million over three years between 2008 and 2011 to a profit of close to €1 million last year.

The Church’s financial statements, presented to the media at Dar Sant’Anna in Senglea, an old people’s home run by the Church, show that the church had an operational surplus of €16,000, which was supplemented by profits from capital gains on investment amounting to €960,000.

One of the biggest source of losses for the Church was the Ecclesiastical Tribunal, which was losing half a million a year. This was because people who could not afford to pay did not pay with the expenses being shouldered by the Church.

Children’s homes and homes for the elderly were also making losses but these losses were being compensated for by profits in other sections, such as collections and parish incomes, Mgr Charles Cordina, pastoral secretary, said.

Collections during Mass totalled €4.5m.

The Government in 2011 also started renting out beds in homes for the elderly paying for the services provided. This also helped improve the situation.