LONDON (Reuters) -British finance minister Rishi Sunak on Monday defended the tax cuts he announced last week, after they were widely criticised for not helping the poorest households through the most severe hit to living standards since at least the 1950s. With the Russia-Ukraine conflict pushing up already high energy prices and putting British inflation on course to reach almost 9%, Sunak told lawmakers that his overall policy plan, including measures taken last year to help people on welfare benefits, were “highly progressive”. He also said borrowing more, on top of his huge spending to sh…