But Cory Bernardi had other ideas.

Just before lunchtime on Thursday, the Australian Conservatives senator moved a series of motions in the Senate attacking abortion, communism, progressive activists GetUp! and White Ribbon Australia, which works to stop violence against women.

Only one of the motions - which are used to record what the Senate thinks - was successful. But for about half an hour, they caused chaos as Coalition MPs split during the votes and other senators yelled abuse at each other. This comes with government MPs already divided over how to legalise same-sex marriage.

One of Senator Bernardi's motions asked the Senate to "oppose Medicare funding for the termination of pregnancy, where it occurs on gender grounds".

The government's formal position was to oppose the motion. But nine other senators backed Senator Bernardi's move, including Coalition frontbenchers Matt Canavan, Zed Seselja and Anne Ruston, and One Nation. Abortion law in Australia is a state and territory matter and Medicare does not specifically fund sex-selection abortions.

In a separate motion, Senator Bernardi asked senators to challenge White Ribbon about its advocacy around "nationally consistent access to safe and legal abortion, including late-term abortion in all states and territories". White Ribbon receives some federal funding.

While the motion was defeated 31 to 21, it still attracted a significant number of Coalition votes, including from Finance Minister Mathias Cormann and Minister for Women Michaelia Cash. It also caused confusion among some government senators, including Communications Minister Mitch Fifield, who walked over to the Labor side, before walking back to the government side. Education Minister Simon Birmingham and Senator Ruston abstained.

After the motion, Sarah Hanson-Young tried to make a statement about the vote. "You bunch of misogynistic ... This is about rape victims having access to safe and legal abortion. That's what you just voted against," the Greens senator said before being cut off by Senate President Scott Ryan.

Coalition MP Ian Macdonald called Senator Hanson-Young a "dill" in reply. He was asked to withdraw but refused the President's ruling.

Senator Bernardi's other motions calling for greater scrutiny of GetUp! and praising plans to teach students about driving a car rather than "radical theories about gender and sexuality" also failed to get to the required votes. Another motion about commemorating the victims of communism was successful.

The scenes in the Senate follow the start of debate on legalising same-sex marriage, which Senator Bernardi heartily opposes.