The new superintendent of Canberra's jail has differed sharply with his predecessor on the question of a needle exchange at the jail.
In his first interview since taking the Alexander Maconochie Centre's top job, Don Taylor refused to be drawn on a needle exchange program at the prison, telling The Canberra Times public servants should keep out of policy debates and that he would implement the Government's policies of the day.
Mr Taylor took over as superintendent of the AMC in early December, ending months of management uncertainty at the prison.
Former superintendent Doug Buchanan's tenure came to an abrupt end in May, with Mr Buchanan claiming he was axed, partially for his opposition to the Government's proposed needle-syringe program.
But Mr Taylor has made it clear he would not be adopting such positions.
''It's not my role as a public servant to take a view,'' he said.
It is a very different position to that taken by Mr Buchanan, who told this newspaper his ''moral'' position against the needle exchange led to his being sacked by the territory's corrections authorities.
''I opposed a needle exchange in a correctional environment due to the safety of staff,'' Mr Buchanan said in June.
''What sort of message are we giving prisoners here that it's okay to bring drugs into a prison?
''My position was well known.
''I would have opposed it morally and that wasn't the Government's agenda.''
Corrections Minister Simon Corbell and his officials have consistently denied Mr Buchanan was sacked, saying he voluntarily returned to his permanent position with the NSW prisons system.
The ACT prison's guards have threatened to strike if the Government introduces the program.
Last month The Canberra Times revealed a second prisoner had contracted hepatitis C in the prison.
In May, another prisoner tested positive for the virus but his body successfully fought off the disease. Despite the row over a needle and syringe program pre-dating the prison opening, Mr Taylor said it was inappropriate for him to get involved in the debate.
''My role here very clearly is around government policy and the initiatives that government, after consultation, after debate, whatever policy the Government thinks is good for our environment, it's my job to operationalise that,'' he said.
''So no, I don't have a view.''
In broader terms though, Mr Taylor indicated that he would examine the smoking rates in the ACT prison.
''There's opportunity to implement new things and new initiatives and I think build on what's already here,'' Mr Taylor said.
''In Victoria they've got a very, very good program so here I think that [in] all those sorts of things we do really good work but they can all be built on.''
Mr Taylor described the quit smoking programs at the AMC as ''minimal'', but said the health service offered ''really good support and advice to detainees that should give up or want to give up'', which would be built on in time.
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