Same-sex marriage advocates have welcomed Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus' call for another vote on marriage equality before the September federal election.

Labor's plan to scrap its anti-discrimination reforms and go back to the drawing board has brought stinging criticism.

Advocates and activists from the LGBTI community have largely welcomed the recommendations of a Senate committee looking at the Federal Government’s proposed national anti-discrimination laws, with the committee suggesting religious exemptions be tightened for service providers, protections be strengthened for transgender people and that intersex people receive specific inclusion under any new legislation.

Finance Minister Penny Wong has been selected as Labor’s Deputy Leader in the Federal Senate after a cabinet and frontbench reshuffle sparked by a number of retirements following Prime Minister Julia Gillard's decision to hold the next election in mid-September.