Tauranga representatives will today cast their vote on the Government's Alcohol Reform Bill that could see the drinking age raised to 20-years-old.

The Alcohol Reform Bill comprises of a three option vote on the drinking age where parliamentarians can choose between increasing the drinking age to 20-years-old; leaving it at 18-years-old; or splitting it.

Crown and Badger manager Richard Two Bears says raising the drinking age will not change the drinking culture of New Zealand.

The split option means the legal drinking age in bars and pubs will remain at 18, but the age will be increased to 20-years-old for those purchasing alcohol at off-licences and supermarkets.

The reform bill also proposes new national maximum trading hours of 7am to 11pm for off licences and 8am to 4am for on licences.

Each MP will cast a conscience vote meaning they are able to independently vote outside of their political party.

Tauranga MP Simon Bridges says he will be voting to raise the drinking age across the board to 20-years-old for two reasons.

'It's overwhelmingly what people in Tauranga tell me they want me to do. I've done surveys, advertising, online polls and it's very clear that is where the mood of Tauranga is.

'Secondly, I sat on the justice select committee that heard the evidence about alcohol law reform. It was very clear to me that all the expert evident supports raising the age.”

While Simon is set on his decision, he does not believe that is the majority opinion among other MPs.

'Is very hard to say what might happen. One of the complexities is that there are three options; I'm told the order in which they're voted on can make a real different to which one wins, so there's a bit of tactics involved.”

The drinking age was lowered from 20-years-old to 18-years-old in 1999 under the National-led government.

Tauranga-based NZ First list MP Brendan Horan would not say which we he was voting today.

'We have a policy in NZ First that we do not give our votes to the media until it has been debated.

'We have a position, but we might change that through debate.”

He says he has no idea which way today's vote will go. He is 'not a great drinker”, and his recent priorities have been with industrial relations, mines and railways.

'I've had my hands full. I haven't really discussed too much about the drinking age.”

Brendan says the idea of a three-way vote will make for an interesting debate.

'There's a lot to debate. You've got the obvious one: I can vote when I'm 18, I should be able to drink when I'm 18.

'But then when we say drink at 18, people get in and they drink when they're 16.”

Crown and Badger manager Richard Two Bears, who is originally from Canada, says he is shocked at the level of binge drinking in New Zealand.

'I have never seen anything like it before.”

He says the drinking age has little impact on the overall culture of drinking in New Zealand and it is the availability of alcohol that needs to be addressed.

'I don't think changing the age will do anything. It is the number of places where people can buy alcohol.

'They need to address how people are drinking. You can't say you can legally go to a bar and drink but you can't go to a liquor store and buy it. You need to look at the number of places selling it.”

The Alcohol Reform Bill was introduced in Parliament in August 2010. Debating will take place later this afternoon and a decision is expected to be made by around 6pm.