Diplomat accused of inappropriate behaviour sues for £1million

By Hayley Dixon

John Yapp was posted in Belize when he was accused by politicians in the country of behaving “inappropriately towards women at official functions". 

As a result, in June 2008, despite 37 years service, he was suspended from his post as High Commissioner to the central American nation with immediate effect, and never re-engaged at ambassadorial level. 

In particular, he was accused of touching the bottom of the politician's wife during a party game at a social event, the Foreign Office's barrister, Alan Payne, told London's High Court today. 

The accusations led to a swift departure just ten months into his three-year posting. 

But the allegation turned out to be "unfounded, and scurrilous", his QC, Jane McNeill, said. 

Mr Yapp was left "shell-shocked" when his superiors told him of bizarre allegations and they were ultimately wholly rejected by the Foreign Office's own disciplinary panel, it was said. 

Mr Yapp himself branded the claims "completely ridiculous, nonsensical and untrue". 

The women were rumoured to be Kim Simplis, the live-in girlfriend of the country’s Prime Minister, Dean Barrow, and businesswoman Lauren Reardon Smith. 

Mrs Reardon Smith vehemently denied that she was subjected to any inappropriate behaviour at a charity dinner and dance, and said that Mr Yapp found the women in the country shockingly forward. 

But despite the fact that the claims were false Mr Yapp believes that his superiors in London "prejudged" the issue before taking the drastic decision to pull him out of Belize. 

"It is his case that he was presumed guilty before being given an opportunity to comment on the allegations against him - or before the Foreign Office had carried out even the most preliminary investigation to see whether such allegations were worthy of belief," said Ms McNeill. 

The Foreign Office failed to back Mr Yapp as he faced the baseless misconduct claims, she went on, despite being a "loyal and dedicated" diplomat of 37 years service. 

The department showed a clear "lack of humanity" in their approach to Mr Yapp's case after his removal - barring him from contacting friends and colleagues in Belize and delaying the return of his family's possessions to the UK, the barrister added. 

The 61-year-old was put through an internal disciplinary procedure which "broke almost every rule in the fairness book" as well as "resurrecting" stale bullying claims which he understood had been "parked", said Miss McNeill. 

When asked about the allegations in 2008 Mr Yapp said that he believed he had upset someone and that is why the false accusations had been made. 

In August that year, the department's disciplinary panel cleared Mr Yapp of inappropriate behaviour towards women. However, what was said to be evidence of his overbearing management style nevertheless earned him a final written warning. 

But Ms McNeill told the court: "We say the pursuit of management style and bullying allegations appears to have been carried out to support the decision that had already been made to withdraw him from the post". 

Mr Yapp, of Tunbridge Wells, says the department's failure to support him triggered a major mental breakdown, leaving him haunted by lingering symptoms of depression. 

In his final years at the Foreign Office, Mr Yapp said he found himself increasingly sidelined and, at times, "ostracised". He retired in 2011 after 40 years as a diplomat. 

He felt no bitterness at his treatment; only a "deep sense of loss", he told the court. 

But he insisted his superiors should have waited to hear "my side of the story" before he was summarily withdrawn from his post on the strength of "bizarre and outlandish" accusations. 

Mr Payne suggested there was "clear evidence" that some of Mr Yapp's staff had felt "bullied" by him. The ex-diplomat accepted that he was "not Mr Perfect", but insisted: "The honest truth is that I didn't bully them". 

The Foreign Office denies claims that it failed to support Mr Yapp, maintaining that the decision to suspend him was reasonable given the serious accusations in the air. 

The High Court hearing continues. Telegraph