University leaders say they will ramp up their campaign to keep the UK in the European Union after re-elected Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed plans to hold an in-out referendum by 2017.

With the dust barely having settled from a general election that handed a surprise majority to the Conservatives, who had committed in their manifesto to holding the poll, Universities UK says it will be saying ¡°a great deal more¡± in coming ¡°weeks and months¡± about ¡°why EU membership is so important and has a positive impact on the British people, our society, our economy and our universities¡±.

Alistair Jarvis, director of communications and external relations at Universities UK, and Vivienne Stern, director of the UK HE International Unit, write that the UK is ¡°exceptionally lucky¡± to be part of the EU.

Europe ¡°makes it easy¡± to collaborate on research, with continental universities remaining the most frequent partners for their UK counterparts, and it also allows thousands of students to take part in exchanges, the pair write.

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¡°The British people, economy and society benefit from the UK being a member of the biggest bloc of knowledge in the world,¡± the post says. ¡°Research, knowledge, innovation and technology are the factors that will decide future economic growth and human progress. EU membership creates British jobs, enables life-changing discoveries and inventions and strengthens the UK¡¯s standing in the world.¡±

The post concludes by stating Universities UK believes it will have ¡°many allies¡± in its campaign, including, the organisation suspects, ¡°our newly re-elected Prime Minister¡±.

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The intervention comes just weeks after vice-chancellors travelled to Brussels to lobby against cuts in research funding.

On that trip, Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, the vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge, told Times Higher Education that exiting the EU altogether would see universities lose hundreds of millions of pounds a year in research funding.

Meanwhile, Mr Cameron has .

Ms May has repeatedly crossed swords with the university sector over the counter-terrorism and security bill, which many academics fear will suppress freedom of speech on campuses, and over immigration restrictions placed on overseas students.

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chris.havergal@tesglobal.com?