Former European Commission president Jacques Delors, the father of modern European integration who became a bogeyman for British eurosceptics, said on Thursday, June 16 that Britain's EU membership was positive both for the United Kingdom and for the European Union, Reuters reports.

Delors, 90, who clashed frequently with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during his decade at the head of the EU executive from 1985 to 1995, said in a statement to Reuters that he would respect the British voters' decision in next Thursday's referendum on whether to remain in the EU.

"I consider the UK's participation in the European Union to be a positive element both for the British and for the Union," the French Socialist elder statesman said.

His statement was emailed through the Jacques Delors Institute to dispel what it called inaccurate rumors that he favored a Brexit so that remaining EU members can move ahead with deeper integration.

It came as several opinion polls showed that supporters of Britain leaving the EU had taken a lead in the hard-fought campaign for the June 23 vote, due to fears of immigration from Europe, Reuters says.

In a separate article released on Thursday, Delors joined former EU commissioners Pascal Lamy and Antonio Vitorino, former Italian premier Enrico Letta and the Delors Institute's director, Yves Bertoncini, in calling for a stronger European collective security effort, whatever the outcome of the British vote.

"Every country in Europe should contribute to strengthening our collective security, and that includes the United Kingdom, which will participate even better as a full member of the EU," they wrote. Britain and France are the EU's leading military powers with the most extensive intelligence services.