Rare Friday parliamentary sitting

Federal parliament will make a rare Friday sitting as unfinished and urgent business keeps pollies from starting a five-week winter break.

After a late night on Thursday spent debating changes to the government's proposed scrapping of the mining tax, senators will be back in the chamber for another big day on Friday.

They will consider a shift in foreign ownership restrictions on Qantas and a bill which deals with funding for a council road building program.

Meanwhile, the lower house will have to decide if it will accept Senate amendments to the government's mining tax repeal proposal.

The upper house has been ordered to sit for 14 hours each day until it has dealt with the priority business.