SCHOOL-LEAVING AGE
Children have to stay at school until the age of 16. There is no upper age limit.

ALCOHOL
You have to be 18 to buy alcohol in a shop or a pub, but if you are 16 and you are having a meal in a pub, you can drink beer or wine with it.

PROSECUTION
In Scotland, you can be prosecuted for a crime at the age of 8. In England and Wales, the age is 10. You can't be sent to prison until you are 21.

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MOTOR VEHICLES
6-year-olds can ride a motorbike. At 17 you can ride a car.

SMOKING
You can smoke cigarettes at any age, but you can't go into a shop and buy them until you are 16.

ARMED FORCES
Men can join the army at 16, women at 17. If you are under 18, you need your parents' consent.

MARRIAGE
You can get married at 16 with your parents' consent. Otherwise you have to wait till you are 18.

PAID JOB
You can take a part-time job at 13, and a full-time job at 16 (i.e. when you've left school).

VOTING
Anyone aged 18 or over can vote in a general election.

RETIREMENT AGE
Women can retire on full pension at 60. Men have to wait till they are 65.

ENTERING PARLIAMENT
The minimum age for becoming a Member of Parliament is 21. The youngest person to become an MP in the 20th century was Bernadette Devlin, who was elected a week before her 22nd birthday.