Why did BP sell the Forties oil field?

Production falling.

Why did BP sell Grangemouth refinery?

No oil, no refinery needed.

Why did BP not ensure that they retain operational control over the Forties pipeline system?

Wealth losing proposition from here on out.

Why were banks so keen to lend such large amounts of money to buy assets that world beating companies no longer required?

A Sovereign wealth fund and/or hedge fund/Synthetic Investment
Vehicle to leverage out debt as far as possible into the future
while taking all/as much "real" wealth out ASAP.

Why is the Ineos pension fund under strain?

Because all wealth is being drained into the Queen's Offshore Tax Havens and other Top .01% positions. Pensions are being underfunded across the board.

G7 countries are looking to crush labor across the board.

This is only the start.

Clive Maund almost gets it (MI-6?):

http://www.safehaven.com/article-10087.htm

"As we entered this unique century, the greatest economic and military power in the world, the United States, still basking in the glory of facing down and defeating the Soviet Union, had the choice of getting together with the other nations of the world and arriving at a common and equitable agreement regarding how to apportion and parcel out the world's dwindling fossil fuel energy supplies in the coming decades. Instead of taking this enlightened route it has decided instead to adopt the primitive "me first" approach and has embarked on an old-fashioned campaign of colonial conquest, with a few sycophants in tow such as Britain hoping to get "a piece of the action". This is, of course, very bad news for the planet, not just because of the colonial powers' plans to make off with most of the pie, but because of the vast misuse of resources required to secure a disproportionate share of the pie in the first place, which has involved considerable death and destruction, including a lot of Iraqi civilians and US servicemen."

Complete control of the Mid-East, which the United States and the major oil companies are now close to having achieved, of course confers massive power over the rest of world, in particular over rising economic powers such as China and India and the immense leverage that this will in time afford can be used to steer these countries in whatever direction is desired. The US is believed to be involved in a strategic race against time to corner the bulk of the world's remaining oil reserves, the control of which can then be used to dissuade countries like China from resorting to the wholesale dumping of dollars or US Treasuries, along the lines of "Try it and we'll cut off your oil supply", which one would expect to be couched in more diplomatic language. Because of its gargantuan levels of debt the US is acutely vulnerable now, but with time it plans to tip the scales back in its favor partly by sales of its recently acquired plunder."

Britain, as the 1st officer of the US in its wars of acquisition, will enjoy a privileged place at the table in an increasingly resource starved world. Israel will look on with quiet satisfaction at all of this."

The worker in all of this will be crushed.

There is no polite way to get the attention of the Queen and her minions.

Note that the workers here aren't demanding anything more, they're striking to keep what they have. That's where we are.

TPTB have to start taking away to keep increasing their wealth.

Good luck to us all.

James

PS-"A two day strike over the protection of workers pensions does not seem unreasonable action to take."

Watch law enforcement/military. Whose side they come in on.

Like during Thatcher's Coal Strike, I don't think it'll
be on labor's side.