Welfare reforms are worthwhile, but not an easy budget fix

Welfare reform is difficult. It is an expensive, long-term, trial and error process. Often, the easy targets have been targeted and the hard cases remain. It is certainly not a very fast way to get the budget bottom line on track.

But welfare reform is worth doing. When it works, it's a win-win. Individuals benefit by becoming self-reliant. Taxpayers benefit from not having to meet the costs of an overgrown welfare state. And the community benefits from having more of its members actively involved.

The Gillard government has largely got its new focus on welfare right. But we should see the measures for what they are: a political positioning tool rather than a quick way back to surplus. Despite what Wayne Swan says, being tough on welfare is not the same thing has handing down a tough budget.

Just like welfare reform won't help us rebuild after the floods, it won't help us get back in the black either – at least not in the short term.