The Congress was held in the Sociology Institute of the Free University of Brussels. The amendments tabled by the 228 delegates from the member parties were discussed in depth and it was apparent that voting did not take place along national lines. Under the chairmanship of President Gaston Thorn the programme was unanimously adopted by the plenary together with an election manifesto binding on all member parties for the campaign for the first direct European elections.

The European Liberal Democrats were thus the first "European party" to come out with a political programme with clearly formulated objectives projecting the face of liberalism to the European electorate.