Senator LUDLAM: I move

That the Senate-

(a) notes that:

(i) on any given night more than 105 000 Australians are experiencing homelessness, including 7 000 people sleeping rough or without adequate shelter,

(ii) while the rate of rough sleeping fell by 13.5 per cent between 2006 and 2011, in 2012 more than 136 8000 instances for a request for assistance went unmet, and

The Coalition has turned its back on 105,000 homeless Australians today by refusing to commit to the aim of halving homelessness by 2020.

Australian Greens housing spokesperson Senator Scott Ludlam said the Coalition's rejection of a Senate motion on homelessness showed "extraordinary hypocrisy".

"Last Thursday night myself, Malcolm Turnbull and Christopher Pyne took part in the CEO Sleep Out but today the Coalition refused to put their money where their sleeping bags are.

Adjournment Speech 25 June 2013.

The Federal Government must unequivocally reject mandatory telecommunications data retention in the wake of the release of the National Security Inquiry report, the Australian Greens said today.

Greens communications spokesperson Senator Scott Ludlam said the Report reinforced the overwhelming public opposition to the proposal to collect and store the telephone and email data of all Australians for two years.

The Greens, Amnesty International, the Anglican Church, Refugee Rights Action Network and many others have joined together to host the Refugee Welcome Fiesta in Fremantle tomorrow.

The all-inclusive community event marks the end of World Refugee Week and also commemorates Welcome To Australia's national Walk Together.

Senator for Western Australia Scott Ludlam said "the dangerous trend of politicians exploiting refugees for political advantage is toxic for all immigrants, and indeed toxic for all Australians. We are gathering to take a stand for tolerance and humanity".

Australian Greens housing spokesperson Senator Scott Ludlam will spend tonight sleeping on the streets of the nation's capital to raise awareness of homelessness.

"There is no reason why any Australian should be denied the basic human right to shelter. I hope Australians will donate to St Vinnies by sponsoring me for the Sleep Out, and will get behind the Greens' campaign to deliver affordable housing and better services for those in need."

The Government and Opposition colluded today to block a request for a statement by the Attorney General on implications for Australia of the PRISM surveillance scandal in the US. Labor and the Coalition combined their numbers to block the move.

The Australian Greens will introduce a Bill next week to strengthen regulation of data collection on Australians, returning normal warrant procedures to law enforcement agencies accessing peoples' private data.

"This is the first step to winding back the kind of surveillance overreach revealed by the PRISM whistleblower," Greens communications spokesperson Senator Scott Ludlam said.