While the rest of the world has been watching with wonderment at the spectacle of the US Presidential elections - and the Glenrothes by-election becomes a footnote of debatable proportions in British political history - there is another minor political tremor waiting to happen. Scottish Conservatives will finally have to decide what to really do with the Calman Commission and its findings.

Ever since the Scottish people voted for the creation of their own Parliament and the Scottish Conservatives subsequently stood for election, taking their seats on the Mound, and then at Holyrood, the party has ducked, dived and dodged the issue of how to address the inadequacy that is Donald Dewar’s devolution settlement.

A number of MSPs, in particular myself and then Murdo Fraser, argued for greater financial accountability through a direct relationship between the money it spends and the taxation it raises - so that the parliament’s propensity for profligacy could be tamed. In 1999 spending stood at just over £16 billion – nine years later it is at £32 billion. Such appeals, whilst finding much favour amongst Conservatives at Westminster and throughout England were ignored by the Scottish party leadership.

Meanwhile the Scottish Labour Party established the Calman Commission as part of a grand strategy when it was run, rather haplessly, by Wendy Alexander. The Commission bought Labour some time, time it badly needed. It had still not come to terms with its defeat at the hands of Alex Salmond’s Scottish Nationalists as Labour MSPs, MPs and its media cheerleaders tried to figure out what to do.

Why not sit back and let the SNP fail – but what if they don’t? Call the SNP’s bluff on the independence referendum by pushing for it immediately – but what if they won? Should Labour become more Unionist, more nationalist, more whatever? Labour needed to pause and think collectively so that it could work out how it should respond and then get everybody to drive forwards using the same road map (or Tom Tom).

One example of the disputes and dithering that plagued Labour a year ago was the internal but rather public disagreement about whether or not to adopt the tactical ploy of pushing for an early referendum on independence. Not only did it burst all over the Scottish media like some embarrassing pluke, it then became a festering sore once the disagreement between Gordon Brown and Wendy Alexander was visible.

Unnoticed at the time was that Labour had already taken two decisions that practically everybody in the party agreed with – firstly there would at some point be a referendum, be it called by Unionists or Nationalists – and secondly that whenever the referendum would be held Labour (and therefore the Unionist camp) should not defend the status quo but should offer a new improved version of the settlement, what might be termed as Devolution Large.

Thus, not only did the Calman Commission buy time, it was also Labour’s solution to defining what devolution large should look like and help it regroup around that solution.

Why then should the Scottish Conservatives help Labour by supporting the commission? Simple. The truth that the Tory leadership does not like to confront is that the party is still riven with dissent about how to approach devolution. In it’s own way the party has still not come to terms with its own defeat in 1997. The only difference is that the divide is not visible because the media thinks the party so marginal as to make reporting such disputes dull and boring – unless they break out into something more interesting like the custard pie fight that would be a leadership battle.

There are many in the Party, egged on by Gerald Warner and Alan Cochrane, that believe the Scottish Parliament is a thoroughly bad show and at the very least should be ignored – if not abolished. To follow that line would be a self indulgent death wish. Then there are those who believe that so long as the Parliament exists Conservatives should try to get elected, but only with a view to helping win Westminster seats - achieving power is not a serious consideration. This has been the strategy for the last nine years - a form of life support that could have the plug pulled from it at any time - and especially if the Tories take power in the UK with a weak Scottish base. Finally there is a small but growing number that believe the Parliament is fundamentally flawed, it’s financial unaccountability making it an ultimately unsatisfying institution that poses a long term threat to the Union. A high risk strategy? Maybe, what has the party to lose?

David McLetchie’s time as Scottish leader was dominated by the struggle for dominance between these three groups that simmered just below the surface. Rather than strike up a tune based on the support of one of those groups he would make mood music to all three. Since his demise Annabel Goldie has simply carried on singing, although when it comes to Karaoke, McLetchie always had the edge.

Anyone that comes into close contact with Holyrood can see its flaws and much as many critics might think most MSPs are not worthy of more powers – I would suggest that giving them real responsibilities could be the making of them and might also attract a better calibre of member.

Calman is due to publish an interim report. It shall probably make three options, the status quo with very minor adjustments, the introduction of assigned revenues (certain tax revenues given directly to Holyrood), and some form of fiscal autonomy whereby certain taxes could be varied and collected separately in Scotland (maybe with some assigned taxes too).

When the interim report comes out the Scottish Tory party will have to respond. It cannot sit on the fence for ever. It cannot wait on Labour – or Calman – to make up it’s mind for it. Annabelle Goldie has at last to show some leadership on this issue. She cannot wait on being told by David Cameron that Fiscal Autonomy is okay – when David Cameron is waiting on a signal from the Scottish Conservatives to say what their preferred option is. Goldie should call the Party’s own special conference – debate the findings of Calman and finally, at last take a position.

The Scottish Tory Party should give up the ‘after you Claude’ form of ‘followership’ that it has practised for so long and show some real leadership – striking out for as strong a formula of fiscal autonomy as it can stomach. It will win friends – and even voters – and give Cameron a Scottish dimension that he so badly needs – if he wants to have a genuine Cameron bounce.