About 90% of the 620 requests received under the Code on Access to Information in the fourth quarter were met, the Home Affairs Bureau says.

Of the total, 546 requests were met in full and 11 were partly met. Only five, or 1%, were refused. Another 34, or 5%, were withdrawn, and in 16 cases, 3%, the Government did not hold the information sought.

Since the code was introduced in 1995 there have been 18,627 requests. Of these, 16,709, or 89.7%, were met, 16,322 of them in full and 387 in part. Only 378 requests, or 2%, were refused. A total of 848 requests, or 4%, were withdrawn and there was no information in 644 cases, 3%.

As at December 31, there were 68 requests still being processed.