New Zealand Young Nationals
The Young Nationals, in conjunction with other New Zealand political party youth wings, support the current purchase age for alcohol of 18 years. They argue that the two biggest problems with the current law are the lack of emphasis on individual responsibility, and the ineffective attempts to enforce moderate drinking, and that raising the age, both at off-licences and at bars, will not solve the problem that New Zealand society faces around the issue of binge drinking. At the National Party Conference 2010 the Young Nationals passed a remit, led by 2010 National Policy Chair Edward Greig, for the continuation of a drinking age of 18.
Age of majority
Many ages of license are correlated to the age of majority, but they are nonetheless legally distinct concepts. One need not have attained the age of majority to have permission to exercise certain rights and responsibilities. Some ages of license are actually higher than the age of majority. For example, to purchase alcoholic beverages, the age of license is 21 in all U.S. states. Another example is the voting age, which prior to the 1970s was 21 in the US, as was the age of majority in all or most states. In the Republic of Ireland the age of majority is 18, but one must be over 21 years of age to stand for election to the Houses of the Oireachtas. Also, in Portugal the age of majority is 18, but one must be at least 25 years of age to run for public office. A child who is legally emancipated by a court of competent jurisdiction automatically attains to their maturity upon the signing of the court order. Only emancipation confers the status of maturity before a person has actually reached the age of majority.