Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Kathy Dunderdale has been ranked as governing with the best fiscal policy among Canada's 10 provincial leaders, by the Fraser Institute.

The Vancouver-based conservative think tank released a report titled Measuring the Fiscal Performance of Canada's Premiers in 2012 on Thursday.

The report assesses how the premiers have managed public finances in their provinces.

The Fraser Institute said the report ranks the 10 premiers, including eight current leaders and two former premiers, on three components of fiscal policy: government spending, taxes, and debts and deficits.

Dunderdale ranked first overall with a score of 71.4 out of 100. New Brunswick Premier David Alward placed second, Saskatchewan's Brad Wall third, and B.C.'s Christy Clark placed fourth.

The remaining premiers all scored below 50, with Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger grabbing last place, with a score of 19.2.

While Dunderdale placed second in the category of government spending and seventh in terms of taxes, she tied for first with Wall in the debts and deficits category, with a perfect score of 100. The Fraser Institute stated they were the only premiers to both record a surplus and reduce their provinces' net debt during their tenures.

The report measured each premier's performance over the time that he or she held office, and includes information up to the most recent year with data available, the fiscal year of 2011-12.

The Fraser Institute noted that some leaders were evaluated over a longer period than others. Quebec's former premier Jean Charest was evaluated for the longest period, from 2003 to the current fiscal year, while Dunderdale, Alward and Clark were all assessed for the shortest period of 2011-12.