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Liam Fox has denied seeking regime change as he condemned the "unacceptable slaughter" of civilians.
Speaking in the Commons this afternoon the defence secretary said the civilian population in Libya would be "considerably better off" if Gaddafi were no longer in power but said regime change was "not the policy" of the government.
"It is government policy, as it is Nato policy, to do everything possible to protect civilian population," he told MPs.
Fox said Gaddafi was responsible for the "unacceptable slaughter of the civilian population" and he hoped the Libyan leader would soon realise the "game is up".
But Labour backbencher David Winnick said there was a "great deal of anxiety" that Nato was trying to get rid of Gadaffi in contravention of UN resolution 1973.
Fox told MPs that regime change in Libya was "not the policy of the government".
He said: "While Nato's air strikes have been successful in reducing colonel Gaddafi's ability to attack his people, he continues to target civilians in clear contravention of United Nations Security Council resolutions and international law.
"We intend to continue to degrade colonel Gaddafi's command and control capability, including his intelligence network.
"The regime needs to understand loud and clear that the international community is very resolute: it will continue its military activity as long as this absolutely unacceptable slaughter of the civilian population continues."
Today the lead prosecutor at the prosecutor at the International Criminal Court asked judges in the Hague to issue warrants for Gaddafi, his son Saif al Islam al Gaddafi and the Libyan intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi.
Foreign secretary William Hague welcomed the move and said the "reach of international justice will be long".
"Those responsible for attacks on civilians must be held to account. The international community must fully support the ICC in thoroughly investigating all allegations," he said.
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