46Moreover, as the Court has already held, the method by which a benefit is financed does not affect its classification as a social security benefit (see, in this regard, Hughes, cited above, paragraph 21). It does not matter by what legal mechanism the Member State implements the benefit. Consequently, the fact that, as in the present case, the public contribution takes the form of advances on maintenance paid by a public fund in the place of the defaulting debtor is of no consequence.
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