The Guardian has expressed concerns over a ‘Brexit brain drain’ following the departure of over 1,300 academics from UK Universities in the past year.

Now, with almost a year having passed since the EU Referendum, 64 British universities have released information, revealing that during the last year alone 1,393 EU staff are reported to have left.

The University of Cambridge has been disproportionately affected, losing 184 members of staff in the past year, up 35% from figures released in 2014-15. However, these statistics do not take into account any new members of staff arriving from the EU.   

At Cambridge, the proportion of EU staff is at 27%, putting the university in danger of a ‘Brexit brain drain’. Up to 76% of EU academics would consider leaving their jobs in UK universities after the Brexit vote, according to a YouGov poll which was conducted in January.

The Russell Group recently reported that staff who originate from the EU account for more than 23% of all academics at their universities, with 24,860 members of EU staff found in total.

This follows an Education Committee Report in April which recommended that the government provide guarantees to university staff from the EU. The report stated that “The rights of EU higher education staff to work and reside in the UK need to be guaranteed as soon as possible.”

They warned that “a delay in confirming these rights will only intensify the current uncertainties for universities, and likely lead to a significant ‘brain drain’ in talented staff,” arguing that the Government “must be prepared [to] unilaterally agree” the rights of EU nationals before the end of this year.

Speaking to The Guardian, Julian Huppert, the Liberal Democrat candidate for Cambridge, said that Brexit would risk leading to a “sharp rise” in EU nationals leaving the UK.

He stated that Theresa May bears some responsibility for seeking an “extreme version” of Brexit, which will “rupture our ties with Europe” and will fail to “guarantee the rights of EU nationals,” but also targeted Labour’s refusal to back free movement.

However, Universities Minister, Jo Johnson, said that the Conservatives would ensure the UK remains the “go-to place” for innovators, “securing the status of EU nationals in Britain and British nationals in the EU.”

He refuted Huppert’s argument, stating “All the Lib Dems offer is Jeremy Corbyn as prime minister, in a coalition of chaos that would disrupt the Brexit negotiations and put our future at risk.”