On 30 June 2016, soon after a referendum on the issue took place in the United Kingdom, Czech President Miloš Zeman called for a similar referendum to be called in the Czech Republic, on whether to leave the union, as well as NATO, while adding that he did not personally favour withdrawal. The Czech government immediately rejected Zeman's proposal, with a spokesman for Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka stating that "membership in these organizations is a guarantee of stability and security". Andrej Babiš, Finance Minister and leader of the second-largest party in the governing coalition, added that the referendum would be "damaging".