An example of abuse is the 20-something-year-old whose back "hurts" too much for him to have a job, so his is disabled.
Sans state-guaranteed welfare, he would do fine at many jobs. But the allure of someone else paying for everything is too much to pass up, so consciously or unconsciously, he allows himself to be crippled. (Similar to abuse, of say, painkillers.)
The argument is that legal entitlement to welfare creates increased opportunity for abuse, because no one wants to deny it and then get sued in legal courts.
I don't personally consider that to be abuse because welfare is set at such a low level that I don't begrudge anyone who is completely (or largely) reliant upon it.
Abuse, to me, would be a wealthy person claiming benefits when they don't need them.
To elaborate a little - let's imagine welfare gives ~6000GBP a year equivalent, and any job this person can hope to get gives ~10000GBP a year equivalent.
I think if we want them to work, then they should be offered more by employers, not less in welfare. Essentially, giving them negotiating power, rather than saying 'work for BigMegaCorp for $5 an hour or starve'.
Sans state-guaranteed welfare, he would do fine at many jobs. But the allure of someone else paying for everything is too much to pass up, so consciously or unconsciously, he allows himself to be crippled. (Similar to abuse, of say, painkillers.)
The argument is that legal entitlement to welfare creates increased opportunity for abuse, because no one wants to deny it and then get sued in legal courts.