Welfare state restricting iron tablets at first (6)
I believe the answer is:
safety
'welfare' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'state restricting iron tablets at first' is the wordplay.
'state' becomes 'say' (say is a kind of state**).
'restricting' indicates putting letters inside.
'iron' becomes 'fe' ('Fe' can be a synonym of 'iron').
'at first' indicates taking the first letters.
The initial letter of 'tablets' is 't'.
'fe'+'t'='fet'
'say' enclosing 'fet' is 'SAFETY'.
(Other definitions for safety that I've seen before include "immunity" , "Refuge" , "The condition of being protected from danger" , "Opposite of danger" , "The condition of being free from danger" .)