The Federal Government says it has been forced to abandon its plan to drug test welfare recipients because it could not get the numbers to support it in the Senate.

Key points: Drug testing of welfare recipients was announced in the last budget

Drug testing of welfare recipients was announced in the last budget The plan drew criticism from medical groups who said it would have detrimental effects

The plan drew criticism from medical groups who said it would have detrimental effects Mr Porter says the drug test component of the bill will be taken out "for the time being"

The controversial plan has been heavily criticised by medical groups and addiction experts, who said evidence showed such a move did not work.

The measure was first announced as part of the last budget, with trial sites proposed in New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia.

Social Services Minister Christian Porter said the proposal does not have the Senate crossbench support it needs, and will be revived at a later date.

"The bill will proceed, in all likelihood, [but] the drug testing component of the bill will be taken out for the time being," Mr Porter said.

"But we are absolutely committed to that policy of drug testing welfare recipients in a trial to see whether or not compelling people into treatment improves their employability and employment prospects.

"Those announced trials needed to be legislated and the reality is at the moment we can't quite get the crossbench support that we need to legislate to make those trials a reality."

Under the abandoned proposal, 5,000 job seekers in three trial sites would have been subject to random drug testing from next year.

The Government maintains the measure could have helped Australians get themselves off drugs and welfare and into the workforce.

If a welfare recipient had tested positive to cannabis, ice, ecstasy or certain opiates, a large portion of their welfare payment would have been quarantined for use only on certain necessities.

A second positive test would have seen the welfare recipient charged for the cost of the test and referred for treatment.

Medical groups welcome backdown

The plan was opposed by medical groups, including the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs, the Australian Medical Association and the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP).

In a submission to a Senate committee inquiry into the bill, the RACP argued the plan would only cause more delays in the already long queue for treatment.

"Not only will this policy be a waste of resource, money and opportunity, we are concerned that the measures would in fact cause considerable harm to a highly vulnerable population," the submission read.

The president of the Australian Medical Association, Michael Gannon, welcomed the change of plan.

"This has been tried in other parts of the world. There's not a scrap of evidence that it reduces drug use in welfare recipients," Dr Gannon said.

"There's no evidence at all that its useful in helping people get back to work."

Instead, he said the Government should invest in rehabilitation services for people suffering from substance abuse.

"There is no evidence at all that people on welfare are anymore likely to have those kind of problems than people in the workforce," he said.

"If there are extra dollars to support people trying desperately to overcome the scourge of drug addiction, of alcohol abuse, to get them to be productive members of the community back into the workforce, then we would support that.

"But this was the single measure in this year's budget that stood out as being mean and unfair and not evidence based, and we're glad that the Government's walked away from it."