Yes, I think at times there are. Depending on the type of data, there can be differences between the federal, provincial, and local levels.
I'm thinking, for example, that it's a good opportunity to reference what exists right now with legal information. I would hope most people would agree that of all the sorts of data that ought to be made freely available, court cases and statutes are certainly towards the very top of the list. Citizens can't possibly be expected to follow the law if they don't actually have access to the law. That's why CanLII, the organization on whose board I sit, was established by lawyers across the country, who pay out of their dues every year a certain amount of money to help make legal materials freely available.
The approach that is taken at the federal level is different from what some provinces take, and different again from what some municipalities take. We can debate the importance of local bylaws and other municipal-related materials, but surely both federal and provincial information is critically important.
I'm a new member of the board, but I know that CanLII has faced issues, particularly at the provincial level, because some provinces even see access to things like provincial statutes as a potential revenue opportunity and thus create restrictions for people to be able to access that information. We are just talking about the laws that people like you help enact.
There are some differences, and I think that if we were to move forward on whether to call it open government or open data and we're talking about universal access to law in a free format—which I think is absolutely essential—there is a role to play in ensuring that not just the federal government but also various provinces are on board as well.