An American philanthropist who has donated more than £20 million to the arts in Britain is to return to the United States in protest over the Government’s “nondom” tax and the “hostility” she has encountered in this country towards foreign donors.

Carol Høgel, who was raised in Chicago but has lived in Scotland for 24 years, has resigned from most of her British arts posts and moved to California because of what she describes as “the destructively spiteful, philistine attitude” of the Govern-nment towards foreign residents who are facing a £30,000 tax, announced by Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, in the Budget last month.

Ms Høgel, whose family founded the Dunard Fund, and who was appointed CBE for her support for the arts, has been responsible for lavish patronage of the Edinburgh International Festival, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Scottish Opera and the National Galleries of Scotland.

She was dismayed by the tax, which is to be levied on people registered as non-domiciled in Britain, and which would affect not only her, but her three grown-up children. She pointed out that she had always paid tax in Britain, but that her contributions to the arts were clearly “of no importance” to “Labour bureauprats” Friends and supporters had written letters on her behalf to Mr Darling and the Prime Minister, pointing out the extent of her generosity, but they had received no answer. However, what prompted her final decision to leave was an article in The Scotsman newspaper, by a humorous columnist, Robert McNeil, which mocked the plight of rich foreign residents, and added the ironical comment: “good ruddy riddance to them”.

In a strongly worded letter to Mr McNeil, Ms Høgel wrote: “It’s absolutely not the tax which is driving me out of Scotland, it is the hostility of people like you and Messrs Brown and Darling, which is so deeply hurtful . . . After 24 years of working and paying taxes in the UK, I am heading back to North America, where an individual with involvement in, and charitable contributions to visual arts and classical music is valued, not punished.

“Neither the sincere gratitude and ongoing needs of [arts organisations in Britain] can outweigh the destructively spiteful, philistine attitude of the Government or journalists like you.”

The news came as a shock to the arts world in Scotland, which has benefited from the Dunard Fund’s patronage and support over many years. Two years ago the trust pledged £500,000 to help to clear the Edinburgh International Festival’s debts. Major productions by Scottish Opera would never have taken place without the fund’s backing. The Playfair Project, which refurbished the National Galleries of Scotland, received a substantial grant thanks to Ms Høgel’s intervention, and orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, the Scottish Chamber Orchetra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra have benefited from her support.

Reacting to the news yesterday, Simon Woods, Chief Executive of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, said: “This is a crushing disappointment. Carol has not only been a visionary supporter, she brought real passion and commitment. We are losing not only invaluable financial support, we are losing a friend as well.”

Mr McNeil responded to the furore, saying: “I read her letter a few times and couldn’t make head nor tail of it. Apart from anything else, I was writing about the SNP’s local income tax, not Labour’s policy on nondoms. I’ve also called for bald and fat people to be imprisoned. Let’s hope they don’t leave the country. We need them desperately too.”

Hobby philanthropist

— Carol Colburn Høgel’s father built a multi-million-dollar electrical company but was also an amateur viola player who poured money into a Los Angeles music school

— Ms Høgel performed in Edinburgh as a touring concert pianist. As a trustee of the Dunard Fund, she has helped the Edinburgh International Festival, National Galleries of Scotland, National Library of Scotland and Britain’s major opera companies

— She was appointed CBE in 2005 and once said: “We have inherited this giving gene. Some people’s hobbies are buying expensive race horses. Our hobby is giving”

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