NEEDLE SWAP PLAN IN JAIL A "SURRENDER" SAYS EX-GOVERNOR

THE last governor of Grafton Jail has ridiculed a push to give drug-addicted prisoners access to a needle exchange program, saying it was tantamount to guards surrendering to the illegal flow of ice and heroin.

John Heffernan saw more than his fair share of violence and drug addiction among inmates during his three decades with the NSW Department of Corrective Services.

Now in his retirement, he is witnessing something very different - groups including the World Health Organisation and the United Nations, and even the ACT Government, calling for prisoners to be given free access to clean needles.