Teenage pregnancy
A high-profile storyline for the character was when he got his girlfriend Bridget pregnant. The storyline progressed and saw the couple decide to have the child. This caused controversy and an 'outcry' from conservative family groups in Australia who accused the programme of using the characters to normalise teenage pregnancy. Speaking on behalf of the groups, Pro-Family Perspectives director Angela Conway said: "[Teenage pregnancy] is not something that should be considered the norm, programmes like "Neighbours" can make the behaviours that lead to teenage pregnancy seem normal and acceptable. A lot of kids just aren't ready to get their head around details of explicit sexuality." "Neighbours" executive producer Susan Bower was quick to defend her character's storyline stating: "I am quite sure a lot of people are not happy with this storyline. We decided we would show the ramifications on the teenagers' lives." Mignon added that the storyline between Declan and Bridget was not shallow, trite, vulgar, further adding she wouldn't have liked to film the storyline if it was and branded it as showing emotional spectrum of pregnancy justice. Critics slammed the show, noting that "Neighbours" is a G-rated show, and the storyline could lead to more promiscuity and teenage pregnancies among young viewers. The storyline continued regardless of the controversy and Declan became a father, and shortly after Bridget died in a car accident. Declan was left as a single parent.