Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says legitimate concerns remain over the encrypted message access bill, but that he was not prepared to leave the legislation hanging over the summer break.

Key points: Bill Shorten said Labor did not want to expose more risks to national security in the interim

Bill Shorten said Labor did not want to expose more risks to national security in the interim Labor will seek to review encryption legislation in February

Labor will seek to review encryption legislation in February Scott Morrison has accused the Greens and Labor of using encryption laws as a tool to water down border protections

Labor had planned to amend the Government's legislation — which has repeatedly been described as flawed — only to pass the laws late on Thursday, provided the Coalition agreed to make certain changes in 2019.

The Opposition then pulled its amendments in the Senate after the Finance Minister Mathias Cormann gave an undertaking to consider further changes next year.

Attorney-General Christian Porter later announced the Government had agreed to "consider" Labor's amendments "if any genuinely reflect the recommendations of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security".

Mr Shorten said Labor was not going to leave the laws hanging over the summer break, saying he did not want to expose more risks to national security in the interim.

"Last night, I formed the view that the Parliamentary year shouldn't end on a note where there was no sensible conclusion to a national security matter," he said.

"The Prime Minister ran away from Parliament. It was all too hard. He said, 'Well, we will sort this out next year'.

"I understand in the Parliamentary process there can be debate between the Senate and the House of Representatives, the need to improve legislation. The people of Australia, though, often don't have time for what they perceive to be games.

"I thought it was important that we reach at least [a] sensible conclusion before the summer on the important matter of national security. We will seek to improve the legislation in the new year.

"There are legitimate concerns about the encryption legislation. But I wasn't prepared to walk away from my job and leave matters in a stand-off and expose Australians to increased risk in terms of national security."

Mr Shorten acknowledged criticisms of the laws and said Labor would review them next year.

"To all of those who are concerned about the economic impact of this legislation, we hear you. And we've said we want to review it," he said.

"But in the meantime, I think Australians are over the games and people standing in two different corners yelling at each other and throwing rocks and insults.

"I will take half a win and move forward than simply continue this sort of angry shouting, which I think does mar … the Government's conduct."

Labor, Greens accused of using legislation as 'political tool'

Speaking to Channel Seven, Mr Morrison said the Opposition would be able to debate amendments when Parliament resumes in February.

The bill was passed before Scott Morrison had even responded to Bill Shorten's request. ( ABC News: Ian Cutmore )

But he said the legislation was delayed due to Labor and the Greens using the proposed laws as a political tool to dilute Australia's border protections.

"The Opposition wants to move some amendments and they will be able to do that when Parliament returns. That is up to them," Mr Morrison told Sunrise.

"We believe those laws were necessary and the amendments that we put through to the bill yesterday reflected what had come out of the joint Parliamentary committee process. They were the amendments that were agreed between the parties.

"But we did have to work very hard to ensure they were passed yesterday because they were being delayed and used as attack to try to get the Government to water down our border protection laws.

"Labor and the Greens joined forces yesterday to do just that. In the last three months I have got over 100 children off Nauru.

"That bill was about trying to end offshore processing, and Labor and the Greens have made sure that they are voting against offshore processing which protects our borders."

Sorry, this video has expired Attorney-General accuses Labor of risking Australian's safety over encryption bill changes

Labor and the crossbench had the numbers in the House of Representatives to force a vote that would have meant more refugees coming to Australia from Nauru and Manus Island.

However, delays in the Senate dealing with that meant the Upper House was not able to change the encryption bill if it wanted it to become law this year.

"What I will do if we're elected is prioritise resettlement. I am optimistic that it won't take five years," Mr Shorten said.

"We want to resettle people overseas. And what we have got to do is make sure that the people smugglers can't sell their crooked and wicked … promise and exploitation of vulnerable people by saying, 'If you get on an unsafe vessel it will be happy so long as you get to Australia'. That is the path which has led to drownings at sea.

"At the end of the day, I do think we should take refugees in this country, but we have to make sure we don't have a policy which is actually dangerous to people."