The millions of dollars in “negotiating fees” the Liberal government paid to the teacher unions highlights the cosy relationship between the two.

Ever since they came to power in 2003, the Liberals have had such a symbiotic relationship with the teacher unions that it has at times appeared unhealthy. Number-crunch a little closer and you’ll find the relationship is actually bad for your health.

As you read these numbers, keep in mind how much the government sloshed over to the unions to “negotiate,” and how much the teacher unions have ploughed into Liberal election coffers — through direct donations to campaigns and via the so-called Working Families, a coalition that comes together at election time to fund costly ads targeting the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party.

Look at the numbers and it becomes clear the Liberal government is putting the health and lives of Ontarians at stake in order to feed the voracious appetite of the teacher unions.

Why do teacher unions have such political clout? Well, they have the right to strike and they’re willing to exercise it. The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) especially holds a very large hammer over the heads of parents: If elementary teachers hit the bricks, parents have to stay home from work or find babysitting.

Here’s the scam: Education funding is soaring, but student enrolment is declining. Meanwhile, an aging population is putting pressure on our health-care system.

Unlike teachers, Doctors and nurses are loathe to take strike action. Most of them will tell you they feel a moral obligation to do their best for their patients.

Since their election in 2003, the Liberals have increased the education budget by 240%.

At the same time, they increased the health and long-term care budget by approximately 170%.

In other words, the education budget has increased by 1.4 times the health and long-term care budget.

From 2003-04 to 2012-13, student enrolment declined almost 5%. It’s also worth recalling that Ontario discontinued Grade 13 in 2002/2003. So enrolment should have dropped significantly at that point, but they later brought in full-day kindergarten. Teacher salaries have increased 30% over that period.

Meanwhile, Ontario also graduates more than 4,000 more teachers a year than there are teaching positions available — notwithstanding Dalton’s McGuinty’s efforts to create more teaching jobs by introducing full-day babysitting.

The number of teachers is still rising while the number of nurses and doctors is going down.

Wynne’s government will eliminate 50 medical residency positions over two years, yet 800,000 Ontarians don’t have a family doctor and we’re tied for last in the country when it comes to the number of doctors per capita.

Next time a teacher union tells you the provincial government isn’t adequately funding schools, you have the numbers to prove them wrong.

The province’s accumulated debt, meanwhile, has doubled to around $300 billion. Taxes have soared.

And you wonder why the province is selling off Hydro One? The money won’t go to infrastructure.

It’s a quick-fix life-preserver to save us from drowning in red ink.