QUEBEC - The fraud case against former Quebec deputy premier Nathalie Normandeau and six other people has been put off until July.

Crown prosecutors and lawyers for the seven accused agreed in a Quebec City courtroom this morning to delay proceedings to allow the defence to study the evidence.

The charges include corruption, fraud toward the government, conspiracy, breach of trust and using forged documents.

The alleged crimes occurred between 2000 and 2012 and authorities say they were part of a scheme in which political financing and gifts were exchanged for lucrative government contracts.

Also facing charges are: Marc-Yvan Coté, a former Quebec Liberal cabinet minister; Bruno Lortie, Normandeau's former chief of staff; Mario Martel and France Michaud, two former executives with engineering firm Roche; Ernest Murray, a former political aide to ex-PQ leader Pauline Marois; and Francois Roussy, a former mayor of Gaspé.