Butch you can't just cut them off, our system does not operate on an execution style of govt; We do not have food stamps or the likes of the USA. Who ever has been successful at forcing people to work. There are a lot of hidden mental statuses out there, not diagnosed.
Welfare is a problem, but an ongoing one. It is going to take more thought than an aeroplane trip's thoughts to come up with the right solution and will cost plenty.
You can see the depth of action involved, when we hear solutions like soft work experiences being used. That means there is no money to be allocated for any real solutions.

579, what makes you think even the old age pension will survive ?
Without any mitigation planning, we will just wake up one morning and
find that all the governments cheques have bounced and the banks as a
result are also broke.
You will quickly find that the Financial Stabilisation Board has
sequested your bank deposits. (remember Cyprus ?)
You haven't heard of the FSB ?
No they have been very quite about it.
Ask Joe Hockey about it or better still Wayne Swan as he signed us up for it.

Since the Whitlam government started to pour taxpayers' money into victim industries that would always be beholden to them and would vote Labor, government has found it necessary to withdraw services and introduce user pays affecting traditional welfare recipients, such as age pensioners.

That is the elephant in the room: the hundreds of millions, in fact billions, wasted annually on victim industries that produce no results, pouring the lion's share of the money into salaries, conferences, 'networking', 'study' tours and on lobbying for more guvvy funding and grants.

Next problem is the apparent impossibility of obtaining accountability, despite recommendations and simple 'how-to' guides from consultants and the Australian National Audit Office. How is it that hundreds of millions of taxpayers' $$ are allocated annually to provide aboriginal housing, but after decades of doing so, there are only vacant blocks and wrecked houses to show for it?

We may not all know it but this country indeed the whole world must reconsider what we spend and how we do it.
579 do you understand why I posted this thread,and for that matter the anti CFMEU?
In defense of both welfare and unionism!
Consider right now we could be targeting in to Abbott,s anti ABC rant.
Questioning his ability to lead or his drifting his whole party to the right and further down the polls.
Do you think we have that right?
While refusing to confront our own troubles?
Welfare is worth saving, but not for every one, by far not for every one.
We you and I want a Labor reformist government.
But by hiding our faults we fail!
Fail to win those folk who make up their own minds.
Who wanted to hear us being honest.
If diverting the thread to solar panels was an attempt to hide the threads intended path you are part of the problem not the solution.

Looking back on 2014 say on news years day 2015 we will have seen reforms in this area that some times confront us.
I hope by then the knife will have been taken to Abbott Baby bonus scheme.
See it is waste too. highlighting my concerns the cuts to come, as has every action of our Prime Minster post his installation has been, will be purely political, not well thought out and balanced actions.