LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday apologised to LGBT veterans who served in the country's armed forces and were affected by a pre-2000 ban on homosexuality.

"The ban on LGBT people serving in our military until the year 2000 was an appalling failure of the British state – decades behind the law of this land," Sunak said in parliament following the publication of an independent review on the matter.

"As today’s report makes clear, in that period many endured the most horrific sexual abuse and violence, homophobic bullying and harassment while bravely serving this country ... on behalf of the British state, I apologise."

(Reporting by William James, writing by Farouq Suleiman)