British farmers will be subject to unannounced inspections by European Union officials under Sir Keir Starmer's Brexit deal, raising fresh concerns over the return of Brussels control in post-Brexit Britain. Under the terms of the agreement, EU agencies will be granted powers to carry out random spot checks at UK farms, abattoirs and food production sites to ensure continued compliance with the bloc's food safety and hygiene rules.

The move stems from the Prime Minister's decision to "dynamically align" with EU sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards - part of his broader push to improve trade flows, boost exports and reduce food prices at the border. But critics say the approach amounts to ceding sovereignty and undermining key freedoms won during the Brexit process. The Conservatives warned that the deal was already beginning to unravel, with the EU's ability to send inspectors into British farms emblematic of what they called a "rule-taker" mentality.

One source told the : "It's completely normal for different members of the same SPS arrangements to complete routine checks on each other."

Although EU spot checks are a standard feature of trade deals with countries such as Canada, New Zealand and Brazil, their inclusion in a UK deal is likely to prove politically explosive.

The prospect of foreign inspectors arriving with little notice and the power to sanction businesses is already fuelling anger among farming groups and Eurosceptics alike.

Victoria Atkins, the shadow environment secretary, said: "Labour's agreement with the EU is starting to unravel.

The fishing industry has described the deal to me as a 'horror show'.

"And we are now starting to see what this will really mean for farmers and just how far Keir Starmer has been played."

She added: "With £6 billion of fishing rights for the EU, the loss of our right to set our own food rules and now Eurocrat inspectors nosing into UK farms, this is a bad deal for British farming and fishing. When Labour negotiates, Britain loses."

Alongside food rules, Sir Keir also agreed to EU demands for 12 years of guaranteed access to UK fishing waters.

Further concessions include joining the Erasmus student exchange programme and a new youth mobility scheme to allow young EU citizens to work and study in Britain more easily.

EU inspections are typically triggered after the detection of potentially harmful products in the single market. Health certificates allow regulators to trace food items back to their source - including individual farms or abattoirs - and impose shutdowns if breaches are confirmed.

Campaigners have previously used audit results to press for bans on certain imports, including Brazilian meat.

British officials will also be entitled to conduct similar inspections within the EU, though critics argue this does little to offset the loss of regulatory independence at home.

Express.co.uk has contacted Defra for comment.