Trevor McDougall Coomber (born 13 June 1949) is a former Australian politician. He was born in

Charleville Charleville can refer to: Australia * Charleville, Queensland, a town in Australia **Charleville railway station, Queensland France * Charleville, Marne, a commune in Marne, France *Charleville-Mézières, a commune in Ardennes, France ** ...

to schoolteacher Laurence Edward Coomber and Sybil Harding, ''née'' Lightbody, a secretary. He was educated at public schools in Pelican, Lowmead and Rosedale and at high schools in Bundaberg and Mount Gravatt. In 1970 he graduated from the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

with a

Bachelor of Pharmacy A Bachelor of Pharmacy (abbreviated B Pharm or PharmB or BS Pharm) is a graduate academic degree in the field of pharmacy. In many countries, this degree is a prerequisite for registration to practice as a pharmacist. Since both PharmB and Phar ...

, and began work as a pharmacist in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

. On 8 April 1972 he married Roberta Anne Richardson, also a pharmacist; they had four children before their separation. Coomber moved to the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

in 1973 and to Palm Beach in 1974, where he was a member of the Beach Protection Authority of Queensland and patron of several community groups. A member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

since 1974, he resigned from the party in 1981 over retrospective taxation. In 1982 he was elected to

Gold Coast City Council The City of Gold Coast is the local government area spanning the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and surrounding areas. With a population of 606,774 it is the second most populous local government area in Australia (City of Brisbane being th ...

as a

National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

, although he resigned from the party in 1986 after land development pressures on the Gold Coast led to a disagreement. During his tenure as an Alderman, he met and later married Kathryn Smith, a personal assistant. After an unsuccessful run for the state seat of

Currumbin Currumbin ( ) is a coastal suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Currumbin had a population of 2,920 people. Geography The suburb extends from Currumbin Creek in the north to Wyberba Street in the south. The Pac ...

as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

in 1986, he was elected to the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...

in 1989 as a Liberal. In 1992 he challenged National Party leader

Rob Borbidge Robert Edward Borbidge (born 12 August 1954) is a former Australian politician who served as the 35th Premier of Queensland from 1996 to 1998. He was the leader of the Queensland branch of the National Party, and was the last member of that p ...

in Surfers Paradise, but was defeated. After leaving politics, he returned to community pharmacy, operating several pharmacies under the Terry White brand. His association with Terry White strengthened, to include holding a position on the group's Board. In 2018, Coomber's operating company entered administration and was eventually wound up by liquidators in 2019 with unsupported liabilities in the order of AU$19 million.

References

1949 births Living people Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Queensland Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly People from the Gold Coast, Queensland People from Charleville, Queensland {{Australia-Liberal-politician-stub