Former British High Commission sues his government

John Yapp

John Yapp is a former British High Commissioner who was suddenly withdrawn from Belize back in 2008 when he was accused of behaving inappropriately towards women at an official function.  The incident reportedly involved Kim Simpliss and Lauren Reardon.   Yapp was recalled to the Foreign Office and never given another ambassadorial appointment. He retired in 2011after forty years of service but he is suing the British government for a million pounds. In a British High court in London, the drama is playing out; Yapp’s attorney, Jane McNeill, says the allegations were unfounded and scurrilous and that the Foreign Office showed a lack of humanity when they barred him from contacting friends and colleagues in Belize and delaying the return of his family’s possessions to the UK.  According to the Telegraph, Yapp also contends that action was taken against him without any investigation and it turned out that he was eventually cleared of the allegations by a disciplinary panel. The former diplomat claims that the failure to support him triggered “a major mental breakdown, leaving him haunted by lingering symptoms of depression.” But the Foreign Office denies that claim.