Britain’s second most senior diplomat in Washington abruptly leaves post

James Roscoe with foreign secretary Yvette Cooper at a reception in Washington last month Photograph: Victoria Jones/Shutterstock

Britain’s second most senior diplomat in Washington, who stood in as interim ambassador after the sacking of Peter Mandelson, has abruptly left his post.

The UK government gave no reason for James Roscoe’s sudden departure, which comes amid an investigation into the leak of discussions at a meeting of the UK’s national security council.