WHAT a disaster for Declan Donnelly.

I'm not sure if you've heard his terrible news but, in horribly inconvenient timing, he's become a father just weeks before he's due in Australia to film the new series of I'm A Celebrity.

While this should be a happy time for Dec - and congratulations on the news, a new baby is a glorious thing - he's no doubt fretting about the terrible headlines this event in his private life is sure to prompt.

I mean, he's a working father.

How will he juggle having a brand new baby with being away overseas for a month?

Never mind the practicalities of sorting out childcare and support for his wife, how will he deal with the terrible guilt of being apart from baby Isla?

Let's have a look. Ok... 'Declan Donnolly 'head over heels' after birth of first child'.

'Declan Donnelly and wife Ali Astall welcome baby girl'.

Hmm. Well, that's odd. This all seems positive.

This year, instead of hosting with his regular partner Ant McPartlin, Dec is teaming up with Holly Willoughby.

Holly is a mother-of-three and one of the first articles following the announcement of her new job posed the question, 'What will happen to Holly Willoughby's kids while she's in the I'm A Celebrity jungle?'

No, you haven't stepped through a wormhole and emerged in 1973. A newspaper questioned a working woman's family arrangements.

As well as the problem with sexism here, another obvious issue is the desire for clicks. This sort of headline is going to generate outrage and outrage generates interest. Interest means people reading your story online.

It's perfect. But let's not, as female journalists, trample on other women, please.

Newsreader Kate Silverton was moved to respond to an - oh, I'm trying to think of a polite word here - interested party on Twitter who suggested she was "ditching" her two children for three months in order to take part in Strictly Come Dancing.

Is anyone asking Lee Ryan what he plans to do with his two children as he trusses up and trots about for his stint on Strictly? How about Graeme Swann? Danny John-Jules?

Of course not.

Children are still seen as the primary concern of women.

Modern family set ups are moving further and further from the traditional dynamic of breadwinner father and stay-at-home mum yet we're still in a position where the assumed norm - for heterosexual couples - is that the father will continue to work full time and the mum will take maternity leave and then go part time.

Legislation was introduced in April 2015 to allow parents to share parental leave. At last count only around two per cent of couples were utilising the chance to split the 12 months of leave.

You can see why mums don't want to give up on the chance to spend the first year of their child's life with their child. It also took a long, hard fight to win the right for women to have protected time off work with their new baby.

Reluctance from dads to take up the offer to share parental leave is also understandable: concerns around missing out on promotion, as seen to be slacking by staying at home with the baby rather than cracking on at the office - all things women also have to face.

There's also the added male socialisation that tells dads they must support their families financially.

Dads are undoubtedly more hands-on than they have ever been and that's brilliant. It's a step towards making things better for mothers, fathers - and children.

Caring male role models can only be good for young people.

The government went wrong in expecting mothers to give up part of their leave for the sake of fathers. How about 12 months entitlement for each parent? In Sweden dads are given three months "use-it-or-lose-it" leave with the government encouraging them to take five.

It can often take compulsion for attitudes to shift - could compulsory paternity leave also help?

Dads have children too - let's not keep mum about how vital their role is.