Labor's attack on Derryn Hinch and Nick Xenophon is set to rage late into the night after the Senate extended sitting hours to debate tinkered laws that restored the building industry watchdog.
Attorney-General George Brandis moved to extend sitting hours to midnight on Wednesday, and indefinitely on Thursday night if need be, to pass legislation before the upper house breaks for a month.
The government has also agreed to Labor's request that legislation establishing a new regime to manage the entitlements of parliamentarians also be dealt with before the Senate rises.
The government has sufficient crossbench support to pass the ABCC legislation, but Labor and the Greens appear unwilling to give up without yet another fight on the controversial watchdog.
The resurrected legislation shrinks a two-year transition period for companies to comply with a new building code to nine months after a rethink by senators Hinch and Xenophon over the summer break.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
Labor, the Greens and unions have launched a scathing attack on the crossbench, with Senator Xenophon revealing he is considering defamation action in response to the CFMEU campaign against him.
"We are in the grip of post-truth politics where it is more important to tell the story you want rather than tell the story people should know.," he said.
But the most vicious attack was reserved for Senator Hinch, with senior Labor figure Kim Carr revealing the independent had made a deal with the Victorian branch of the Labor party at the 2016 election about how he would vote on industrial relations matters in return for a preference arrangement.
"I defy you to deny that," Senator Carr told parliament.
"Those commitments have now been broken - I hope this is your last term because we won't be doing it again."
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull weighed in on the attack during question time, labelling it an "extraordinary threatening" speech.
"The reality is, the Labor Party is using its preferences and doing it very openly in the Senate, to threaten independent senators."
Senator Hinch had earlier defended himself from the attack, telling parliament he did what he thought was right.
"I still believe if you're involved in legislation, if you're involved in hurting the people you're trying to help, then man up, own up and do something about it."
