The federal government's attempts to deliver massive tax cuts to big business will come to a head on Friday, with Finance Minister Mathias Cormann warning the Senate will keep sitting until the plan is dealt with.
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After debating until midnight on Thursday, Parliament has resumed in Canberra for an extra sitting day following the defeat of the government's plans to change section 18C of the Human Rights Act.
The fate of the $50 billion 10-year business tax cut package remains unclear, after negotiations with Pauline Hanson's One Nation and attempts to lock in support from crossbench powerbroker Nick Xenophon.
Much hangs on the outcome, with the government in the final stages of preparation for the May budget. It is the final sitting week of Parliament before the budget.
Senate crossbenchers are seeking to limit the tax cut, but are yet to agree on whether their compromise offer should apply to companies with annual turnovers up to $10 million or $50 million.
Lower house MPs are waiting in Canberra for an outcome before returning to the chamber to endorse the final plan.
Asked if Parliament would see another day of marathon sittings, possibly extending into the weekend, Senator Cormann said securing the change was crucial for business certainty.
"The government is in the hands of the Senate but the Senate will not rise until our company tax cut proposals has been dealt with," he told Sky News.
"We want to get as much of our plan through the Senate today as possible because obviously we want to provide certainty to businesses that make decisions looking at the future and what lies ahead in terms of investment and growth."
With a compromise proving too difficult to reach on Thursday, Senator Cormann said the government was committed to the policy.
"By reducing company tax and letting business have more of their own money to invest in their future success, we enable them to hire more Australians and pay them better," he said.
Labor's Tony Burke slammed the Coalition's management of the Parliament.
"How did it come to this? No one's position is a surprise," he said.
"I don't know what planet the government has been operating on if they've got all the way to after the Parliament was meant to rise before it's occurred to them that these were the views of the crossbench and the views of the Labor Party within the Parliament."
